Colourful Protest

I went into town today, to take part in a protest march against the „Rechtsruck“ (shift towards the right) and the rightwing extremist party AfD (recently endorsed by Elon Musk and JD Vance). 

P had wanted to come, too, but didn’t feel well enough this morning, so I went on my own.

The mix of people was interesting, I thought. There were groups from several political parties, from left to centre of the political spectrum; some LGBTQ-activists and human rights campaigners; many young people, and also many elderly ones, like the „Omas gegen Rechts“ (Grannies against the Right). I chatted with a few of them, and was astonished to learn that the oldest participant in today’s march was 88 - a year older than my mother, but unfazed by the hour-long walk  in the cold. 

We weren‘t as many people as I had hoped, though. Just over 1,000 protesters doesn’t feel enough for a city of 300,000 - but I guess that a number of protesters had gone to nearby Frankfurt today, where a similar march attracted well over 20,000 participants. 

Translation of the banners in the bottom left and right photos: 
Bunt ist die Farbe der Zukunft = The future will be colourful (also meaning diverse)
Menschenrechte statt rechte Menschen = Human rights instead of right(-wing) humans