FRANKFURT/BERLIN – Masked thugs looted shops in Frankfurt as tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Germany’s cities late Saturday to demand better education and a lower cost of living.
The protests follow a wave of Gen Z-led demonstrations across Europe this year. In Serbia, student-led activism helped oust the country’s long-time leader at the polls, while protests in France devolved into rioting and looting.
German protests organized by the movement group “Gen Z regelt” (German for “Generation Z in Power”) were held in 34 cities including Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich. The group said it opposes compulsory military service and wants more investment in education as many young Germans struggle to cope with rising costs.
In Germany’s financial center Frankfurt, police were trying to control the situation as protests turned violent, with at least two stores looted and several others damaged, Reuters witnesses said.
Frankfurt police said on Sunday: “Violent unrest continues. In the city center, windows of several shops were smashed. People also threw Molotov cocktails at emergency services. We urge all bystanders to avoid the city center or leave the area.”
Official figures on Saturday afternoon showed attendance was below organizers’ initial expectations of 182,000. Police in Frankfurt, Munich and Berlin reported as many as 18,000 protesters, half of the roughly 36,000 protesters on organizers’ sites.
German authorities said Saturday’s demonstrations, which coincided with Halloween celebrations, were largely peaceful but warned that extremist groups sought to exploit the movement.
In Hamburg, some roadblocks were set on fire.
“We are here today to fight for peace and freedom, not for war and coercion,” Generation Z Reigert spokesperson Lina Friedrich said in Berlin on Saturday.
“The most important thing for us is better support for the health and education systems. We are against compulsory military service and we are in favor of a more equitable distribution of the burden.”
Luxury stores board up windows
According to the German Federal Interior Ministry, some far-left extremist forces in Germany and some groups with links to foreign extremist movements have joined forces to mobilize support.
“We all have images from France in our minds – looting, burning houses, burning police cars and attacks on police officers,” said Roman Poseck, interior minister of the state of Hesse, which includes Germany’s financial center Frankfurt.
“France must not be a model in this regard.”
Fearing possible unrest, some businesses in German cities boarded up their windows and planned to close early ahead of the demonstrations, including those along Berlin’s posh Kurfürstendamm.
Organizers focused on growing pressure on younger generations in Europe’s largest economy.
Steve, 18, who will address Chancellor Friedrich Merz at a rally in Munich, said: “The government has shown no response to our concerns other than to continue to cut spending and impose further burdens on us.”
“We will continue to exercise our fundamental right to assemble until you stop ignoring us.”
Germany has struggled to revive economic growth. The country is also facing increasing pressure on pensions and public services as the baby boom generation retires and the working-age population shrinks.
Given the wide range of political and civil society groups involved, some question who is driving the movement and whether it is truly youth-led.
Germany’s national umbrella organization for school students, BSK, has distanced itself from the initiative and is planning a separate day of protests on November 20.
Sean Baker, a student at TU Berlin, said he will attend Saturday’s protest to draw attention to the poor condition of campus buildings.
“When you walk into the room, it looks like an abandoned building,” he told Reuters. “However, this is something we should look at regularly.”
(Reporting by Miranda Murray, Timm Reichert, Tilman Blasshofer, Stephan Schepers and Martin Schlicht; Additional reporting by Christoph Steitz; Editing by Ros Russell, Joe Bavier, Alex Richardson and David Gregorio)