Where was the demonstration? Who was there?
Rallies were planned in more than 30 cities nationwide. The rallies in Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt am Main and Munich were mainly carried out by “Gen Z rules”. Other organizations had registered demonstrations in other cities. According to the initiative, around 120,000 participants took part in demonstrations across Germany - significantly fewer than expected.
According to police, around 5,000 people gathered in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. The initiative speaks of 10,000 participants. Kaja Schwab, one of the initiative's speakers, criticized the policy in a speech. The youth were told "if we just try hard enough, we'll be fine," she said. Instead, life has become difficult to afford and the young generation is "being forced into military service."
The education and protest researcher Nina Kolleck was also at the Brandenburg Gate. She told tagesschau24 that many older people also supported their children during the protests. Overall, there were far fewer participants than expected. She suspects a connection with concerns about violence and the decision of the Federal Student Conference not to mobilize for these protests. That's why many people didn't dare.
At the moment, the forms of protest in Germany are comparatively peaceful, and so far the issues have been in the foreground, says Kolleck.
In Frankfurt, according to police reports, up to 8,000 demonstrators marched through the city center. The demonstration was stopped several times because individual participants had masked up and lit smoke pots. At night the situation escalated in parts of the city center.
According to the police, the meeting in Cologne with several thousand participants was ended early due to "individual disruptive actions" such as masks and pyrotechnics. According to the police, participants in the lower four-digit range took to the streets in Essen, Münster and Bielefeld.
According to initial police information, the number of participants in Hamburg was in the low four-digit range. Some demonstrators set off pyrotechnics and emergency services were thrown at them.
What demands does the initiative formulate?
The “Gen Z regulates” initiative explicitly calls for peaceful protests. From their point of view, these are necessary so that politics and society take notice of the concerns of the young generation. "The situation of young people is precarious. Nevertheless, we are not being heard," said spokeswoman Veronika Dinter at an online press conference shortly before the first day of protests on October 31st.
“Gen Z regulates” shows solidarity with students in France. There have been demonstrations there for a long time.
On the “Gen Z regulates” website, demands from six different areas are listed:
Who organizes “Gen Z regulates”?
The exact structure and the people involved are not known. The website's imprint names Akram Selo as the person responsible with a Swiss address. In an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Selo described himself as an 18-year-old high school graduate.
According to him, the organizing team currently consists of five people, three of whom wanted to remain anonymous. People live in different cities and not everyone knows each other personally. In the FAZ interview it becomes clear that he is concerned about individual safety.
During the protest day on October 31st, there were media contacts in some cities. Some gave first and last names, others only gave first names. The initiative otherwise primarily mobilizes via social media such as TikTok, Instagram and news channels such as Telegram.
How do politicians react?
Top politicians do not seem to have come to a final assessment of the initiative yet - but they clearly disapprove of any violence.
Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) condemned the riots after the demonstrations and blamed “violent left-wing groups and chaotic people from the migrant milieu”. “The rioters and looters will be identified and held accountable,” he announced. At the same time, he praised the actions of the security forces. “Excesses of violence like those in Paris were prevented thanks to our highly committed police forces,” said Dobrindt. The police operational concept worked.
The parliamentary director of the SPD parliamentary group, Dirk Wiese, warned that the concerns of young people could be overshadowed by violence. The concerns about the future should be taken seriously, Wiese told the Rheinische Post. “Politicians must act, especially when it comes to the question of a lack of equal opportunities and educational equality.” The promise of advancement of the 1970s must be renewed. Most young people took to the streets peacefully, he made clear. Where protests turn into violence, this should be clearly condemned, "and consistent action is the right way forward."
The Green Party leader Franziska Brantner condemned the riots. “Violence harms the legitimate concerns of the many who protested peacefully,” Brantner told the Rheinische Post. At the same time, she praised the actual demonstrations. The message from young people is unmistakable. The federal government must “answer” this.
CDU general secretary Franziska Hoppermann criticized the riots. It is sad that peaceful protest is no longer possible in some cases. "The real goal of the demonstrations remained questionable until the end," she criticized, "for some it was the perfect cover for violence and riots, which the majority of participants certainly rejected. This destructive anger against the country in which you live is inexplicable to me."
The Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) thanked the police and the predominantly peaceful participants. “Thank you also to everyone who demonstrated and was peaceful.” The police forces and the Interior Ministry had prepared the operation very well. Of course, demonstrations are permitted. “But there is no place for riots, there is no place for violence. And in cases of violence and riots, Bavaria steps in,” emphasized Söder.
After the nightly riots in Frankfurt, Hesse's Prime Minister Boris Rhein (CDU) was shocked. "Anyone who behaves like the attackers in downtown Frankfurt places themselves outside of our society. We will carefully assess the aggressors, groups of perpetrators and the course of events and draw our conclusions." His Interior Minister Roman Poseck (CDU) announced tough action against the rioters. “A devastating connection between left-wing extremists and violent young people has erupted here,” said Rhein.
When are new demonstrations planned?
The “Gen Z regulates” initiative is already planning the next steps. The initiative is calling for actions at schools and universities for the week from November 2nd to 6th. A spokesman also announced that they would take part in the International Youth Strike on November 20th.
On November 20th, the Federal Student Conference (BSK) is also calling for participation, which had distanced itself from the protest day on October 31st. She justified this with the “unclear” organizational structure of the “Gen Z regulates” initiative. However, it is unclear whether the Initiative and BSK coordinated for November 20th.
The “Gen Z regulates” website also mobilizes for Germany-wide protests on November 14th. It reads: "Last time 184,480 commitments on the website. How many can we manage this time?" - The initiative has not yet provided any details.
Where were there riots? Who is responsible?
In some German cities there were riots and, locally, looting in the evening and at night. However, according to previous findings, groups that are not connected to the “Gen Z regulates” initiative were active.
Several shops were looted in downtown Frankfurt. Rioters, some of whom were masked, hit and kicked in shop windows and demolished them with signs or other objects. Sneakers and other things were stolen. More than 30 people were arrested. According to the police, the situation was relaxed on Sunday morning, but "strong forces" remained present.
In Cologne there were riots around the cathedral and the main train station in the evening. The police called on the population to upload photo and video material “of any incidents” to the NRW police information portal. Individuals and groups rioted in downtown Cologne, damaged house facades and patrol cars, smashed windows, attacked emergency services and set off pyrotechnics, a spokesman said.
The police were not aware of any looting until the morning. The spokesman continued whether anything was stolen from the display of the shops with smashed windows.
In Berlin there were bottles, eggs and firecrackers thrown at police officers. The group “Gen Z has had enough!” took part in the demonstration at Rosenthaler Platz. called, which apparently has no connection to “Gen Z rules”. The police blame left-wing radical groups.
A spokesman for “Gen Z is in charge” said: “We had no influence on what happened after the rallies ended.” The initiative published a statement on Instagram on Saturday evening in which it distanced itself from "any form of violence as well as violent actions by other groups or individuals" who were not part of the demonstrations.
"We stand for peaceful protest, democratic values and the right to freely express our opinions. Violence has never been and is never part of our movement."
