Around 30,000 people gathered in Berlin today to protest against the far right, just a week before Germany’s snap parliamentary elections. Organizers estimated the crowd at 38,000, demonstrating against the far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD).
The Berlin protest follows massive rallies in recent weeks, including one in Munich on February 8, where 250,000 people participated, and another in Berlin on February 2, which drew between 160,000 and 250,000 demonstrators.
Under the slogan “Hand in Hand, We Are the Protective Barrier,” the protesters reaffirmed their opposition to AfD, fearing it could become Germany’s second-largest party after the February 23 elections. Current polls project AfD securing 20-21% of the vote, behind the conservative opposition, which is polling at 30-32%.
The term “protective barrier” (or “sanitary cordon”) has historically been used by mainstream German parties since World War II to signal their refusal to cooperate with far-right movements at the national level.
