At least 150,000 people gathered in front of the German national parliament on Saturday to protest against the far right, marking the latest in a series of large weekend demonstrations across the country. The pro-democracy protests, sparked by an article published by the investigative journalists' group Correctiv, revealed that right-wing extremists had recently held a meeting discussing the deportation of millions of immigrants, including some with German citizenship. Members of the far-right Alternative for Germany party (AfD) were present at the meeting, fueling concerns among the population.
Despite intermittent rain showers in the German capital, Saturday's protest drew more participants than organizers had initially expected. By mid-afternoon, approximately 150,000 people showed up to make their voices heard. Similar protests against the far right also took place in other German cities, including Freiburg and Hannover, attracting thousands of attendees.
The protest was held under the slogan 'We are the Firewall,' which highlights the long-standing taboo in German politics against collaborating with the far-right. The space next to the Bundestag, Germany's national parliament, was filled with a sea of signs, flags, and umbrellas as demonstrators voiced their opposition to racism and expressed their concern about repeating history.
People from all across Germany traveled to attend the protest, with a shared purpose of showing their determination to prevent any recurrence of the dark chapters experienced in the country's past. Jonas Schmidt, who came from Bremen, emphasized the importance of their presence, saying, 'We absolutely must not allow the stories that we experienced in 1930 or even back in the 1920s to happen again... We must do everything we can to prevent that.' Kathrin Zauter, another protester, found the strong attendance to be encouraging, stating, 'This encourages everyone and shows that we are more - we are many.'
The AfD, founded as a euroskeptic party in 2013, entered the Bundestag in 2017 and has been gaining support since then. Recent polling puts the party in second place nationally, with its support exceeding 20%, which is a significant increase from the 10.3% it received during the last federal election in 2021. The AfD currently holds the top position in eastern Germany, including the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, and Thuringia, where elections are scheduled to take place this fall.
The demonstration on Saturday marked the latest in a series of similar gatherings happening across the country. Many of these protests have far surpassed organizers' expectations in terms of participant numbers. In Hamburg and Munich, for example, protests had to be cut short due to safety concerns arising from the overwhelming number of people overcrowding limited spaces.
While Germany has seen protests against the far right in previous years, the recent demonstrations are notable not only for their size but also for their scope, with protests occurring not only in major cities but in dozens of smaller cities across the country. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz praised the protests, referring to citizens' presence at the gatherings as 'a strong sign for democracy and our constitution.' In a social media post on Saturday, he added, 'In small and big cities across the country, citizens are coming together to demonstrate against forgetting, against hate and incitement.'
The ongoing wave of protests against the far right showcases a widespread commitment to preserving democratic values and combating extremist ideologies in Germany. As citizens stand together, they send a resounding message that they will not tolerate a repeat of history's dark chapters.
