German youth demonstrations reflect anxiety about the future. Scholars: Pessimism fuels political polarization

Nationwide youth demonstrations broke out in Germany recently, reflecting the unease of the younger generation about the future. Stephen Mao, a well-known German sociologist, pointed out that German society is shifting from believing that life will get better and better, to widespread concern about the country's continued decline; traditional political parties are unable to respond to people's dissatisfaction, and the far-right Alternative Party will benefit from this.

On October 31, 34 cities in Germany responded to the call of the youth advocacy organization "Gen Z regelt" (Gen Z regelt) and took to the streets to protest against issues such as insufficient educational resources, rising costs of living, military conscription policies, and inadequate climate protection. Most of the rallies were peaceful, but violent clashes broke out in some cities at night, triggering discussions about the youth protest movement in Germany.

Steffen Mau, a sociologist at Humboldt University of Berlin, recently accepted an exclusive interview with Handelsblatt and pointed out that this wave of protests reflects the younger generation’s dissatisfaction with the existing political system. He believes that German youth are not fully reflected in political decision-making, coupled with unclear career prospects and blocked opportunities for upward social mobility, long-term accumulated frustration and uneasiness have become the reasons for taking to the streets.

Behind the Youth Protests: Blocked Upward Mobility and Insufficient Political Representation

Mao pointed out that in the past, people believed that the next generation had the opportunity to live a better life than the previous generation, but now the channels for upward social mobility are gradually blocked, and even young people from highly educated families have difficulty ensuring a stable career. Coupled with the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic and the uncertainty brought about by artificial intelligence on future employment, young people are further deepening their anxiety about their future.

Citing the metaphor of German sociologist Ulrich Beck, he pointed out: "In the past, people believed that society had a collective upward elevator, but now they feel that everyone is sinking together on the elevator."

Mao said this pessimism is no longer limited to the younger generation. Regardless of personal economic conditions, German people generally feel that the country is in decline, forming a collective sense of decline.

In addition to uneasiness about their economic and career prospects, young people also feel that their demands are not sufficiently taken seriously by politics. Mao pointed out that the younger generation has a smaller population and has relatively limited influence in elections. Therefore, politicians tend to give priority to the interests of voters over 50 years old, making young people even more dissatisfied with the existing political system.

Social media exacerbates social polarization and street protests are difficult to transform into political power

Although youth protests have recently emerged in many European countries, Mao has reservations about whether this wave can develop into a long-term political movement in Germany.

He recalled that during the 2021 German election, young people actively mobilized to demand that political parties pay attention to climate policies. At that time, it was believed that the young generation represented by the Swedish climate movement girl Greta Thunberg might force German political parties to adjust climate policies, but this momentum quickly faded.

Mao explained "hyperpolitisierung" (hyperpolitisierung). Although social issues can trigger intense discussions and collective mobilization, they may not be transformed into sustained political influence through the formal political system.

He pointed out that social media has become a major place for young people to form political opinions. Compared with the past when political identity was established through trade unions, workplaces and political party youth organizations, political mobilization now relies more and more on emotions, and social platforms are particularly prone to amplifying fierce and oppositional opinions.

Mao believes that traditional large-scale political parties are gradually losing their connection with the younger generation; in comparison, left-wing and far-right movement parties are better at gathering supporters through street protests and social media.

Among them, the far-right Alternative for Africa party is particularly good at using social controversies to accumulate political support. Mao described the party as "a political highwayman" that constantly seizes on issues that arouse public anger and gain attention through confrontation and emotional mobilization.

Democracies in trouble: Government failure fuels populism

On the other hand, Germany’s political difficulties are not only caused by social media, but also related to the lack of a clear future vision of traditional political parties and the insufficient ability of the government to implement reforms.

Mao pointed out that Germany's traditional centrist parties have gradually lost their ability to take the lead in setting the political agenda and can only passively respond to social disputes. Sometimes it even adopts the political language of the Alternative Party, which actually strengthens the influence of the far right.

Taking German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as an example, Mao described his governance as being in "flickering mode" and his policy direction was prone to swinging with changes in public opinion. Although Merz can clearly point out the problems facing Germany, his Christian Democratic Party (CDU) lacks a complete policy concept, and the coalition government formed with the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has not demonstrated the ability to implement reforms.

Mao further pointed out that the basic structure of the German federal system was established in 1949. As society became increasingly complex, the complicated decision-making procedures between the federal government and state governments made the government operate too slowly.

"Continuously installing new software on old hardware may eventually cause the entire system to crash." Mao believes that this institutional dilemma reflects the contradictions of democratic politics: the checks and balances mechanism originally established to prevent the abuse of power may be inefficient in decision-making, weakening people's trust in democracy, and even causing some young people to begin to expect strongman politics, fueling the populist phenomenon.

Mao is a well-known German sociologist who has long studied social inequality and political polarization. In the past, he has argued that German society is not as divided as political debates have shown. However, he admitted in this exclusive interview that political polarization is gradually deepening the divisions in German society, and the pace of change is faster than originally expected. (Editor: Chen Chenggong)