On Wednesday, several thousand people demonstrated against right-wing extremism in Freiburg. Protests are also planned for the weekend in the city and other parts of Baden-Württemberg. Photo: dpa/Valentin Gensch
This weekend, Democrats want to take to the streets in several cities in Baden-Württemberg for demonstrations against the right. The list of supporters of the protests, some of them prominent, is also long.
Correctiv’s research into a secret meeting between right-wing extremists with AfD politicians and CDU members caused demonstrations against the AfD in several cities in Baden-Württemberg at the weekend. There are calls for protest not only in the state capital Stuttgart, but also in other parts of the country: According to the website, in Herrenberg, Nürtingen, Pforzheim, Karlsruhe, Offenburg, Freiburg, Heidelberg and Ulm “Together against the right” people on the street. Likewise in Mannheim and Baden-Baden. The demonstrations are organized by a wide variety of actors from civil society: anti-right initiatives such as “Grandmas against the Right”, climate movements such as Fridays for Future or private individuals.
State bishop: AfD cannot be elected by Christians
Political parties and the German Federation of Trade Unions (DGB) are also calling for protests: “Now it is time to show your face: on the street, at rallies and in the workplace,” says Kai Burmeister, chairman of the DGB Baden-Württemberg. The unions support the non-partisan “Alliance for Democracy and Human Rights” organized by the SPD Baden-Württemberg. In an appeal, SPD parliamentary group leader Andreas Stoch addressed more than 130 associations, clubs, organizations and democratic parties. “We cannot be a silent majority. We have to show that together we are ready to stand up for this democracy and the rights of each and every individual,” said Stoch.
Baden-Württemberg’s regional bishop Ernst-Wilhelm Gohl also makes a fiery appeal, addressing potential AfD voters directly: Anyone who tramples on human dignity in the way the AfD does is not eligible for election by Christians Gohl in an article.
3,000 participants are expected at the protest in Heidelberg on Saturday
Baden-Württemberg’s Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann praises the population’s commitment in view of the demonstrations against the right: “It is an encouraging sign that so many are actively taking to the streets for our democracy these days. “That’s a strong signal from the middle of society,” says the Green politician.
Meetings have been registered in several cities in the southwest for the coming weekend. The largest demonstration is expected in Heidelberg: The city is expecting 3,000 participants at the protest on Saturday. In Karlsruhe, around 1,000 people also want to take to the streets on Saturday, and 600 in Pforzheim. It is quite possible that the demonstrations will be significantly more popular, as the example of Tübingen showed on Monday evening: a meeting of 50 people was registered, but in the end around 1,500 came .