A 13-year-old girl who was removed from class and told she could not wear a dress bearing the Union Jack told a large London rally this weekend that "British culture matters too," saying she had been "silenced" by her school.

Courtney Wright, a pupil at Bilton School in Rugby, was introduced by organiser Tommy Robinson (Stephen Yaxley-Lennon) and spoke to an audience estimated by organisers at more than 110,000 people at the Unite The Kingdom march. Wright said she had been placed in isolation after staff deemed her Spice Girls–style Union Jack dress unacceptable for a school Culture Day in July and that she had been prevented from making the speech she had prepared on British history and traditions.

Wright read the speech she had planned for her classmates, describing Britain as "a place built on courage, sacrifice and freedom" and listing what she called aspects of British culture, including the royal family, castles, Shakespeare, music, fashion and food. She told the crowd: "Sometimes in school we only hear about other cultures, which is great because learning about different countries is interesting and important. But you feel like being British doesn't count as a culture, just because it's a majority."

Organisers said the march began at Stamford Street near Waterloo Bridge and moved to the southern end of Whitehall. The event, organised by Robinson, who has described himself as an anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim campaigner, attracted speakers from across Europe and North America, including French politician Éric Zemmour, German AfD member Petr Bystron and Canadian psychologist Jordan Peterson. The gathering drew a reported 5,000-strong counter-protest.

Some participants at the rally carried Union Jacks and portraits of US conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was shot dead earlier in the week, and a handful of high-profile UK figures including commentator Katie Hopkins, former soldier and television personality Ant Middleton, and actor-turned-activist Laurence Fox attended.

Wright’s removal from lessons in July prompted public backlash from parents and a statement of regret from the Stowe Valley Trust, which runs Bilton School. Parents quoted in local media said they were surprised and concerned that Wright had been asked to wait in reception until her father arrived to collect her, while other pupils were allowed to wear traditional dress from non-British cultures for the same school event.

A Downing Street spokesman said at the time that the prime minister "has always been clear that being British is something to be celebrated," adding that the country is "a tolerant, diverse, open country, proud of being British." The school trust apologised for the handling of the incident and said it would review its decisions.

The episode and Wright’s subsequent appearance at a high-profile rally highlight ongoing public debate over how schools manage cultural celebration and national symbols, and how expressions of national identity are handled in multiethnic educational settings. Wright’s speech reiterated her view that recognition of British traditions and culture should form part of broader multicultural education in schools.