Mass demonstrations against the AfD in Germany
FIR is closely following current political developments in Germany, where a broad civil society mobilization against the extreme right has been taking place in recent weeks. A press release about a meeting of functionaries of the “Alternative for Germany” (AfD), the front man of the Identitarian Movement in Austria and other representatives of right-wing conservative groups in a villa in Potsdam, at which the expulsion of millions of people from Germany was fantasized about, triggered this mass protest.
To date, over two million people in all parts of Germany have taken to the streets against the far right, against the AfD and for an open-minded society. The largest rallies to date have taken place in Berlin with 350,000 participants, in Munich (according to the organizers) up to 250,000, in Düsseldorf 200,000, in Hamburg over 100,000 and in Bremen 70,000 people. In Cologne, there were 35,000 in the middle of the week, and later another 70,000. Such mass actions did not only take place in the big cities. In the eastern German states, where the AfD has a 30% approval rating in some cases (according to pollsters), many thousands also gathered in Dresden, Erfurt, Freiberg, Halle, Leipzig, Magdeburg and even Pirna, where an AfD mayor had been elected. Further large demonstrations are planned for this weekend.
Once before, many thousands of people took to the streets in Germany to protest against the right, when in 2000 the then Chancellor Schröder called for an “uprising of the decent” in response to an arson attack on a synagogue in North Rhine-Westphalia. This time, however, they are not following a government appeal, even though members of the government are making an appearance. It is a civil society movement that is driving people onto the streets. Organizations such as trade unions or political parties, which have mobilized for such mass actions in the past, have been overrun by the movement. New actors are registering actions, the media are reporting on the planned actions and many people who have not previously been politically involved are on the streets. At the rallies, you can see homemade signs with slogans and only a few party and organizational flags. In metropolitan areas where there is a developed political scene, the well-known anti-fascist banners are displayed. In many other cities, however, you see more cardboard signs or smaller symbols against the right.
It is pleasing that the ruling politicians have so far failed to put their stamp on these protests, even though mayors and other important figures in local politics have been invited to speak. Although Federal President Steinmeier welcomed these mass movements as civic engagement, he also warned against “radicalization”.
In fact, some of the speeches at these rallies quite rightly criticized the current German government, whose policies are partly responsible for the rise of the far right. It is not only the extreme right that is talking about “remigration”, i.e. expulsion, but a very large coalition is ensuring that entry conditions for migrants are worsened and is creating the legal basis at European level to be able to deport them again quickly. The populist propaganda of CDU leader Merz, for example, who claimed that doctors’ surgeries were overcrowded because refugees were getting dentures there, was criticized. It is also said that the “flood of migrants” must be stopped, that the “disfigurement” of the language through gendering is rejected and that the unemployed would like to cut the small amount of citizens’ benefits – not unlike the AfD.
The media’s reaction is interesting. On the one hand, reporting on the mass demonstrations helps to mobilize people, even in remote areas. The media convey images that carry the civil society wave across the whole country. At the same time, there are attempts to delegitimize the actions from the middle of society. And it is not just the Springer press, which in Germany is used to treating democratic movements, trade unions and anti-fascism as the enemy. Established media also claim that the civil society protest has been infiltrated by “climate sharks” and “Israel haters”. The fact that the speeches not only criticized the AfD, but also the actions of those in power, gives rise to such accusations.
FIR welcomes the social protest against the extreme right in Germany. It is a good prerequisite for changing the political mood of acceptance of the AfD and thus stopping the danger of its advance. Such protests are in line with the FIR appeal for the European elections to “network existing initiatives, social organizations, trade unions and movements on an international level to become a common political voice for Europe”.
To date, over two million people in all parts of Germany have taken to the streets against the far right, against the AfD and for an open-minded society. The largest rallies to date have taken place in Berlin with 350,000 participants, in Munich (according to the organizers) up to 250,000, in Düsseldorf 200,000, in Hamburg over 100,000 and in Bremen 70,000 people. In Cologne, there were 35,000 in the middle of the week, and later another 70,000. Such mass actions did not only take place in the big cities. In the eastern German states, where the AfD has a 30% approval rating in some cases (according to pollsters), many thousands also gathered in Dresden, Erfurt, Freiberg, Halle, Leipzig, Magdeburg and even Pirna, where an AfD mayor had been elected. Further large demonstrations are planned for this weekend.
Once before, many thousands of people took to the streets in Germany to protest against the right, when in 2000 the then Chancellor Schröder called for an “uprising of the decent” in response to an arson attack on a synagogue in North Rhine-Westphalia. This time, however, they are not following a government appeal, even though members of the government are making an appearance. It is a civil society movement that is driving people onto the streets. Organizations such as trade unions or political parties, which have mobilized for such mass actions in the past, have been overrun by the movement. New actors are registering actions, the media are reporting on the planned actions and many people who have not previously been politically involved are on the streets. At the rallies, you can see homemade signs with slogans and only a few party and organizational flags. In metropolitan areas where there is a developed political scene, the well-known anti-fascist banners are displayed. In many other cities, however, you see more cardboard signs or smaller symbols against the right.
It is pleasing that the ruling politicians have so far failed to put their stamp on these protests, even though mayors and other important figures in local politics have been invited to speak. Although Federal President Steinmeier welcomed these mass movements as civic engagement, he also warned against “radicalization”.
In fact, some of the speeches at these rallies quite rightly criticized the current German government, whose policies are partly responsible for the rise of the far right. It is not only the extreme right that is talking about “remigration”, i.e. expulsion, but a very large coalition is ensuring that entry conditions for migrants are worsened and is creating the legal basis at European level to be able to deport them again quickly. The populist propaganda of CDU leader Merz, for example, who claimed that doctors’ surgeries were overcrowded because refugees were getting dentures there, was criticized. It is also said that the “flood of migrants” must be stopped, that the “disfigurement” of the language through gendering is rejected and that the unemployed would like to cut the small amount of citizens’ benefits – not unlike the AfD.
The media’s reaction is interesting. On the one hand, reporting on the mass demonstrations helps to mobilize people, even in remote areas. The media convey images that carry the civil society wave across the whole country. At the same time, there are attempts to delegitimize the actions from the middle of society. And it is not just the Springer press, which in Germany is used to treating democratic movements, trade unions and anti-fascism as the enemy. Established media also claim that the civil society protest has been infiltrated by “climate sharks” and “Israel haters”. The fact that the speeches not only criticized the AfD, but also the actions of those in power, gives rise to such accusations.
FIR welcomes the social protest against the extreme right in Germany. It is a good prerequisite for changing the political mood of acceptance of the AfD and thus stopping the danger of its advance. Such protests are in line with the FIR appeal for the European elections to “network existing initiatives, social organizations, trade unions and movements on an international level to become a common political voice for Europe”.
