Lower Saxony local polls in focus after AfD win
With the slogan “Not a Step Back! No to the AfD and Right-Wing Hate Speech!” around 20,000 people marched through downtown Düsseldorf, according to reports from the police and organizers.
Several political initiatives called for the protest rally to send a united message of support for an open, democratic society.
Among the participants, who marched peacefully without any counter-demonstrations, according to police, were the “Grandmas Against the Right.”
On their poster, which was secured with a small piece of fabric and pins, they proclaimed: “The right is only for knitting.” Numerous families with children also joined the protest march in beautiful weather.
Meanwhile, in Berlin, several marches protesting the normalization of right-wing politics converged on the town hall. Police estimated that 18,000 people participated, though organizers claimed that 32,000 people took part.
The demonstrations were prompted by the state election in Saxony-Anhalt on September 6. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) party received nearly 44% of the vote, the most by far, but fell short of an absolute majority.
As part of a nationwide initiative, rallies were also held in several cities demanding a review by Germany’s Constitutional Court of parties suspected or confirmed by the country’s domestic intelligence agency to be far-right extremists.
The largest of these rallies took place in Munich, where police estimated that around 12,000 people gathered.
Around 2,000 people gathered in Mainz, 1,500 in Saarbrücken, and 1,100 in Magdeburg. Protests were also held in Leipzig and Saarbrücken.