Komet Posted January 21 Posted January 21 Germany sees second day of large protests against far right An estimated 1.4 million people in Germany demonstrated against the far-right Alternative for Germany party (AfD) from Friday to Sunday, according to the organizers of the events. From Friday through the weekend, demonstrations were called in about 100 locations across Germany. On Sunday, rallies were held in major cities such as Cologne, Munich and Berlin. Several other German cities, including Cottbus, Dresden and Chemnitz in the east, also planned to hold demonstrations. In Berlin, around 100,000 gathered outside the Bundestag, or the lower house of parliament, according to police figures. Police in Munich said that some 80,000 people participated in the march, while organizers put the figure at 200,000. The march had to be called off due to overcrowding and attendees were asked to disperse. Meanwhile, in Cologne, police sources put the number of demonstrators at around 10,000. Why are so many people protesting now? The wave of mobilization against the far-right party was sparked by a January 10 report from investigative outlet Correctiv, which revealed that AfD members had met with extremists in Potsdam in November to discuss expelling immigrants and "non-assimilated citizens." Members of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the main opposition party, were reportedly also present. Participants in the meeting discussed "remigration," a term often used in far-right circles as a euphemism for the expulsion of immigrants and minorities. News of the meeting shocked many in Germany at a time when the AfD is riding high in opinion polls ahead of three major regional elections in eastern Germany, where the party's support is strongest. Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who joined a demonstration last weekend, said any plan to expel immigrants or citizens alike amounted to "an attack against our democracy, and in turn, on all of us". AfD confirmed the presence of its members at the meeting but maintained that its remigration proposals, which were part of its last election manifesto, do not include naturalized German citizens. These comments at the meeting were made by an Austrian far-right figure, Martin Sellner, who is not a member of the AfD. https://www.dw.com/en/germany-second-day-of-anti-far-right-protests-sweeps-major-cities/a-68045396 8 1
liquiddiamonds Posted January 21 Posted January 21 Not to be a Debbie Downer, but we all know AFD is weaker in the areas with demonstrations, so the good numbers are not surprising. AFD is way stronger in smaller cities and innercountry. There's clearly a division between german large centers and smaller cities/villages. It's terrifying how they can gain a lot of ground this time around, since all of the last few times they were phased out by other major conservatives, center and left parties. The crisis caused by the war in Ukraine and inflation are really pushing people faster to the far-right, so these demonstrations will need to happen more often past the election once they try to follow their "reimmigration" plans inside the legislature 1
Oziee Posted January 21 Posted January 21 This and the rise of Le Pen in France will mark the end of the European Union. 1 2 1
Chemist Posted January 21 Posted January 21 1 minute ago, Oziee said: This and the rise of Le Pen in France will mark the end of the European Union. I don't think AFD will ever get into power. Le Pen however
naomi24 Posted January 21 Posted January 21 Went on the german subreddit and I saw people complaining about Palestinian flags in the protest Makes me question if the regular German in the protest even understands what being against racism and right wing nationalism means. 2 1
Both Sides Now Posted January 21 Posted January 21 (edited) 11 minutes ago, naomi24 said: Went on the german subreddit and I saw people complaining about Palestinian flags in the protest Makes me question if the regular German in the protest even understands what being against racism and right wing nationalism means. Subreddits like r/Europe and r/worldnews are astroturfed hellholes. 61% of Germans (~71% excluding “Don’t Knows) say Israel is not justified in its war on Gazan people. Considering AfD is currently polling at 18-23%, it’s a reasonable guess there is a large overlap of Germans who support neither AfD nor Israel - especially considering their overlap in… ideology. Don’t know why anyone would be surprised by Palestine flags. Edited January 21 by Both Sides Now 1 1
Dialamba Posted January 21 Posted January 21 54 minutes ago, Oziee said: This and the rise of Le Pen in France will mark the end of the European Union. Danemark, Italia etc The future elections will be a mess.
indochine Posted January 22 Posted January 22 https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2YIVtXMjG5/?igsh=MXAzN3BzMjg4OG9odA==
45seconds Posted January 22 Posted January 22 Germany trying to expel “non assimilated” people isn’t ominous at all.
!ngwe Posted January 22 Posted January 22 (edited) Their farmers will be the key for next election, right can win next elections Edited January 22 by !ngwe
Arrows Posted January 22 Posted January 22 10 hours ago, Dialamba said: Danemark, Italia etc The future elections will be a mess. Denmark? Where’d you get that from? Danish far-right parties have dwindled and got around 10% of the votes in the last election.
Gesamtkunstwerk Posted January 22 Posted January 22 Good. It's shameful that Germany, of all countries, has this kind of rhetoric on their right wing. 1 hour ago, Arrows said: Denmark? Where’d you get that from? Danish far-right parties have dwindled and got around 10% of the votes in the last election. Only because right wing politics has been adapted all the way into center-left parties Social democrats snatched up a good amount of right wing voters although they're typically considered a left wing party.
stevyy Posted January 24 Posted January 24 On 1/22/2024 at 4:50 AM, 45seconds said: Germany trying to expel “non assimilated” people isn’t ominous at all. Millions of people protesting that and the AfD being on the brink of being banned... very ominous, right. The Parliament just held a debate about the AfD - and it wasn't pretty. From the governing parties, to the opposition party (except the AfD) the AfD was shredded to pieces. It's not like in the US here where one half of the political class is supporting this hardcore neo-nazi mess... it's literally everyone against the AfD. They really shot themselves in the foot this time.
stevyy Posted January 24 Posted January 24 (edited) On 1/22/2024 at 9:32 AM, !ngwe said: Their farmers will be the key for next election, right can win next elections They still can't. They may become the 2nd strongest party (which I wholeheartedly doubt btw)... but they cannot form a government on 25% or sth like that. The CDU is going to demolish everyone... a reasonable outcome might be: 35% CDU 22% AfD 18% SPD 12% Greens 5% - FDP 4% - Left a huge unknown factor would be the new Sahra Wagenknecht party... it could snatch a kewt 5-7%. It's still shocking that the AfD could go as high as 20%+. However, I blame the current chancellor for that for being so ineffective. A better current government - and I do not blame the Greens whatsoever - could eradicate the Nazi party. The biggest problem - I think - that we are having today in GER is that most politicians are old men. We need some hot new boys joining the club. edit: ... and girls. Edited January 24 by stevyy 1
The7thStranger Posted January 26 Posted January 26 On 1/24/2024 at 9:04 PM, stevyy said: Millions of people protesting that and the AfD being on the brink of being banned... very ominous, right. The Parliament just held a debate about the AfD - and it wasn't pretty. From the governing parties, to the opposition party (except the AfD) the AfD was shredded to pieces. It's not like in the US here where one half of the political class is supporting this hardcore neo-nazi mess... it's literally everyone against the AfD. They really shot themselves in the foot this time. That's the thing that I keep in my head. They have no allies and will never be able to form a coalition.
RunUpDoneUp Posted January 29 Posted January 29 It's embarrassing that the country people used to look to to clean up your act has a nazi party that gained steam like crazy, all under neoliberal rule. Will people learn their lesson and actually govern the entire nation instead of letting one side fall to the wayside? Germany's track record isn't saying "yes." 1
stevyy Posted January 29 Posted January 29 8 hours ago, RunUpDoneUp said: It's embarrassing that the country people used to look to to clean up your act has a nazi party that gained steam like crazy, all under neoliberal rule. Will people learn their lesson and actually govern the entire nation instead of letting one side fall to the wayside? Germany's track record isn't saying "yes." The people who vote for the AfD are mentally impaired. This QAnon, anti-science, anti-democracy stance is such a widespread thing among all western nations now... it even led to Brexit and Trump being voted into office the first time. The way so many people voted against their own interests is pretty stunning.
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