Frankfurt: Fridays for Future mobilize thousands for the climate
-
fromKathrin Rosendorff
conclude
-
Thomas Stillbauer
conclude
The climate strike mobilizes more people in Frankfurt than before. No trust in the parties – street pressure should help.
It is a large and powerful demonstration that is pushing its way through downtown Frankfurt on Friday – even louder and larger than the climate strike in August, and after all, Frankfurt was proclaimed the central location of the protest for the entire republic. But this demo two days before the federal election in 2021 is even stronger and more emphatic, and there is a reason: the federal election.
However, the Frankfurt “Fridays for Future” vehemently reject the fact that it is “the climate election”, as has been apostrophized several times. Again and again they emphasize that not a single party has a plan that is suitable to avert the climate catastrophe, for the first time right on the Opernplatz at the opening rally.
Climate demo in Frankfurt: Thousands of participants
There the crowd is overwhelming by Friday lunchtime, there is hardly any getting through. Later the Fridays will announce the number of 19,000 participants in Frankfurt amid cheers; the police speak of only 5,000.
From a distance you can see the large inflated globe of Greenpeace. Many environmental organizations are there. Demonstrator Hannah (24) has written on both sides of her poster. On the one hand it says: “Your climate policy is a joke – but nobody laughs # except Armin.” On the other hand: “#Climate before profit” and “Very thin ice”.
“So many people, that’s super awesome!” Says a “Fridays” spokeswoman through the loudspeaker system on the demo truck. The mask discipline on Opernplatz is exemplary, even among those who appeared disguised as bananas or fur animals.
It is important to fight for the system change, explain the spokeswoman – that can only be done on the street. “To put the cross in the right place on Sunday is not something we can be satisfied with.” The economy is still aiming to exploit the global south. “A left slide in solidarity is the best thing that can happen to us,” says the speaker. “Only: Anyone who thinks that it comes with red-red-green is wrong.” – “But who should I choose then?” Asks a young woman in the crowd. “It’s not all the same as shit,” her friend reassures her.
Fridays for Future: Greta Thunberg protests in Berlin
Greta Thunberg, the Swedish founder of the movement, is there in Berlin. Demonstrator Hannah doesn’t think it’s bad that she is not in Frankfurt. “It is much more important that we show our climate demands on the street again before the federal elections, that we put pressure on them. Because we as young voters are unfortunately in the minority. “
A 79-year-old woman from Frankfurt says: “I am here for the future of my three grandchildren.” A young protester walks past her “Grandma for Future – for my grandchildren” sign and says to her: “You are great.” In general I have they discovered the impression that more and more elderly people are dying “Friday” for themselves.
“What is legal is not automatically the right thing,” says the speaker on the truck, “and the right thing is not automatically the right thing.” This immediately sparked discussions on Twitter. “Exactly. We simply renounce law and order. Sorry, that’s not how it works. Something quickly gets on the wrong track, ”criticizes one. The next countered with FDP politician Wolfgang Kubicki, who boasted of having gone to the pub in disregard of the “nonsensical Corona rules”: “If the Vice President of the Bundestag already shows …”
Frankfurt: Climate demonstration starts Taunusanlage
Marie (36) from Dreieich holds up a sign: “Doing is what you want. Only more blatant. ”As a matter of principle, they no longer work on Fridays so that they can be part of all of the“ Fridays ”demos. “Because I don’t know what else to do. Eating a little vegan and not even driving a car is not enough. Something has to happen politically. “
A delegation of left-wing Zapatistas from Chiapas, Mexico, also attended the rally. She makes it clear: “The original peoples will suffer most from the climate crisis.” The capitalist system is to blame.
Shortly after 1 p.m., the demo on the Taunusanlage starts moving. “Break the power of the banks and corporations”, shout the young people at the top, “Oh, save the climate” and again and again: that the future will be stolen from them. They will strain their voices to the limit.
The 18-year-old Timm from Gießen can vote for the first time. “I would have loved to go to the demo in Berlin. Simply because the federal politicians there experience how serious we are with our climate demands. “A 34-year-old biologist from Eschersheim says:” I was very pregnant to demonstrate for the climate. Now my daughter is two and a half years old and nothing has really happened. It’s very frustrating. ”She voted for the Greens by postal vote, but that was not enough. “I have the feeling that if we don’t put any pressure on the streets, nothing will happen on the part of the parties for the next ten years either. So far, I’ve also been very disappointed with the Greens. “
At Willy-Brandt-Platz and in the Café am Schauspiel, people are filming the demonstration and smiling encouragingly. The Frankfurt Complaints Choir sings reinforcing tunes on one corner. The Mainkai is car-free except for the police who drive ahead of the train.
Fridays for Future organize nationwide demonstrations: “You leave us no choice”
“You leave us no choice,” says a banner across the entire width of the Old Bridge. At the interim rally there, a “Fridays” spokesman said: “The next global climate strike is on October 22nd in Berlin. We all go to the coalition negotiations and push a lot of stress. ”THEY are here, he speaks for the thousands on their feet,“ because we are angry and sad every single day – because the climate catastrophe is advancing and politics is doing nothing ”.
Nothing will move, that is the depressing balance of the climate movement, “if we don’t do a huge amount of duck”. Meanwhile, drivers notice how little is moving for them, at least in the city of Frankfurt, when the “Fridays” get serious. Still a very bad idea to drive the car onto Berliner Strasse; a particularly bad one this Friday.
At the destination, on the Römerberg, it turns out to be a bad idea of the “lateral thinking” party “Die Basis” to have its election campaign stand in this place on that day – and not want to switch. A group of demonstrators blocked the stand and the police also sealed it off. “This is not a safe place for ‘lateral thinkers’ and fascists,” shouts a “Fridays” spokesman from the truck, and: “All of Frankfurt hates lateral thinking”, accompanied by thousands of voices. At the Römer there is also a man in the audience who looks like Daniel Cohn-Bendit above the mask. Maybe it’s Daniel Cohn-Bendit.
During the rally, largely unnoticed, a zeppelin with the advertising logo of a tire manufacturer of all things moves across the Römer. Its a lot to do. The activists move on in the afternoon, in the direction of Riederwald, to protest against the construction of the motorway. Today, Saturday evening, they want to “make a loud statement” again. They are by no means to be ignored in the run-up to this federal election. (Katrin Rosendorff and Thomas Stillbauer)
Shortly before the federal election, climate activist Luisa Neubauer gave details in a FR interview on Armin Laschet’s “future team”, climate protection in election programs and excuses after the election.