Thousands gather at 'March for Europe' referendum protest in London

LONDON, July 2 (UPI) -- Thousands of people gathered in London to protest the United Kingdom's decision to leave the European Union.

Protestors carried signs expressing their support for the EU in a "March for Europe" rally, which began in Hyde Park before moving to Parliament Square.

Kieran MacDermott, who organized the march, told the BBC the protest was launched in hope of preventing the government from triggering Article 50 to begin the UK's formal withdrawal process from the EU.

About 52 percent of British voters elected to leave the EU on June 24, leaving many who hoped to remain shocked.

The Guardian reports about 30,000 people attended the protest, which was organized primarily online.

Member of Parliament David Lammy addressed the crowd from a stage and called on UK government officials, including Nigel Farage, Boris Johnson, Michael Gove, to "look at this," in reference to the large number of protestors.

"Huge crowd and great atmosphere at [March for Europe]," Lammy wrote on Twitter. "Don't mourn, organise. Speak out and lobby your MP."

Labour peer Michael Cashman also spoke in front of the crowd, encouraging protestors to "uphold the values of democracy and inclusiveness" which he associated with the EU.

"We must not let right-wing, narrow-minded nationalism nor xenophobia define us. We are better than that," he said. "I honestly believe the disinformation in this campaign has undermined our democracy. Decent British values are also the values of the European Union."