January 20, 2024 – 11:07 pm
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in several German cities on Saturday to protest against the right-wing parliamentary party Alternative for Germany (AfD) and its xenophobic and anti-Semitic stance, MTI reported. Demonstrations took place in Frankfurt, Hanover, Kassel, Dortmund, Wuppertal, Karlsruhe, Nuremberg and other cities, among others.
The wave of protests was sparked by media reports that a far-right meeting was held in Germany last November, attended by representatives of the AfD, where the deportation of millions of migrants was discussed. At the meeting in Potsdam, politicians from the Alternative for Germany party and the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) spoke about bringing back migration. The plan will apply not only to asylum seekers, but also to foreigners with residence permits and “non-integrated” German citizens.
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Vizer said after the incident: Behind seemingly innocuous terms such as “second migration,” emerges the idea of mass expulsion and deportation of people because of their ethnic origin or political opinions.
Protesters at Saturday's demonstration made clear that they do not want the country to return to its Nazi past. Some marched carrying banners reading, “Fascism is no alternative.”
Chancellor Olaf Schulz also supported the demonstrations that have been ongoing for days. He previously said that “right-wing extremists are attacking our democracy.”
More demonstrations were announced on Sunday.
Incidentally, the AfD is currently the second most popular party in Germany, and we wrote about its rise in detail here.
