The “Jamel rocks the forester” festival starts on Friday after being canceled due to weather

After all concerts of the “Jamel rocks the Förster” festival were canceled on Friday due to bad weather, the program was able to start on Saturday. The first group to start was the Schumann Band - a project by Rainer Schumann, the drummer from Fury in the Slaughterhouse. According to the organizers, the performances in the small village in northwest Mecklenburg will last into the night.

Because the festival site was soggy due to constant rain, trucks were unable to bring in the technology on the first day. Even though the weather remained changeable, the organizers managed to at least temporarily dry the ground with wood chips and set up the stage technology. Just in time for the start of the concert, a strong shiver went over the audience - most of them took it easy.

Festival against right-wing extremism

According to the organizers, “Jamel rocks the forester” is not just about good music. With the festival, which has been held since 2007, the organizers Birgit and Horst Lohmeyer also want to make a political statement against right-wing extremism. It is a counter-event to efforts by local neo-Nazis to transform the village of Jamel near Wismar in northwest Mecklenburg into a model right-wing extremist community.

This year, the Lohmeyers awarded the European School Rövershagen near Rostock with the Democracy Prize. The school has been running a war graves working group (AG) for years, which also deals with the fate of the victims of National Socialism. In the schoolyard, the AG built a freight wagon as a memorial, the same one that was used to transport Jews and other victims of Nazi persecution to the concentration camps.

The concerts are also flanked by political workshops and information stands. Shortly before the state elections, Prime Minister Manuela Schwesig, who is the festival's patron, also announced her presence. The organizers assured that there would be no political statements in favor of one party.

The spectacle attracts thousands of visitors every year - also because prominent musicians take part. In the past, Herbert Grönemeyer, Campino von den Toten Hosen, Die Ärzte, Fettes Brot and Deichkind have appeared. The organizers traditionally keep the names of the musicians and bands performing secret until the start.