Gen Z regelt is organizing Oct. 31 rallies in five German cities, with separate groups planning events in 16 others as young protesters press for public investment and oppose conscription.
Organizers use “Gen Z steht auf” as the protest banner. Gen Z regelt is arranging events in Berlin, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne. Groups in 16 other cities have joined the call and are organizing their own events.
The campaign wants the government to put more resources into schools, health services and social security. Its position paper frames service cuts and the cost of daily life as pressures on young people, and argues they should help shape decisions affecting their future.
On the distribution of public funds, the paper argues that young people bear the effects of spending cuts while large companies benefit and money goes to rearmament. The organizers present those claims as a case for changing public priorities.
The position paper points to youth protests in France, Belgium and Spain, along with solidarity actions in Germany supporting French student protesters. It describes Oct. 31 as the beginning of a longer effort. EconoTimes has separately covered French protests over school conditions and living costs.
Berlin police spokesman Florian Nath warned that radical groups might try to use the rallies for their own ends. Organizers say they reject violence and will exclude extremist groups from their demonstrations.
At a separate Berlin school protest on Oct. 16, police said people with no connection to the school joined the gathering. rbb reported that police described the students’ demonstration as peaceful and said a separate group scuffled with officers. The broadcaster’s Oct. 16 account also reported blocked school entrances, arrests and an injured resident.
The five rallies organized by Gen Z regelt are scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. local time on Oct. 31 (9 a.m. ET; 13:00 UTC).
