Since mid-January, hundreds of thousands of people have demonstrated in cities and towns across Germany "against the right" or "the extreme right". I am also very concerned about the growing success of the far-right AfD. In Germany we see the same trend as in large parts of Europe and North America - the far right is winning everywhere, from Helsinki to Rome. Nevertheless, I did not want to take part in this demonstration. Why not?
Firstly, the organisers often belong to the same political groups that have contributed to the current problems. One of the reasons for the right-wing shift of a part of the population is irregular migration. However, a state (or a community of states) that is unable to secure its borders effectively loses the confidence of many of its citizens. Anyone who has pointed out this connection in the past has already been branded "right-wing".
Second: For some of the organisers (e.g. Munich, 21 January 24) (2), the right-wing spectrum begins beyond the Greens and the SPD. But a "democratic right" is just as indispensable a part of a functioning liberal democracy as a "democratic left". Conservatives have important functions in a democracy. For example, by focusing on stability and by approaching change with scepticism and reservations, but accompanying and steering it constructively. (3)
Thirdly, according to Ursula Münch, political scientist and director of the Academy for Political Education in Tutzing, the people who are marching are hopefully not just demonstrating against something or a party. Hopefully they are also demonstrating for something, such as the constitution. (4) The demonstrators should also distinguish between "right-wing" and "far-right", because only right-wing extremists pose a threat to democracy. Furthermore, demonstrations should not be organised in a way that excludes and leads to solidarity with right-wing extremists.
Fourth, the benefits of these demonstrations are limited. Armin Nassehi, a sociologist at the University of Munich, commented on this in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. (5) He would have taken part had he been in Munich: "Because it sends out a great signal". But you can't beat the AfD with good arguments. "The party has a connection with something else, with people's dissatisfaction and excessive demands. When so many people feel the need to demonstrate against it, it simulates a capacity for action that does not actually exist." Anyone who wants to harm the AfD "would have to give reason to believe that obvious problems can be solved. This is probably only possible through a successful substantive policy, i.e. by demonstrating problem-solving competence".
Margit Reiser-Schober
(1) For example: Ruud Koopmans: "The Asyllottery", Munich 2023, p.30
(2) https://www.br.de/nachrichten/bayern/csu-will-demo-mit-anderen-parteien-gegen-rechtsextremismus,U2C4ATE
(3) Thomas Biebricher: "MITTE/RECHTS - die internationale Krise des Konservatismus", Berlin 2023, p.15
(4) Prof. Dr Ursula Münch, Deutschlandfunk, 21 January 2024
https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/protest-gegen-rechts-mobilisierung-der-mitte-ursula-muench-politologin-dlf-afeae9bb-100.html
(5) https://www.faz.net/aktuell/politik/inland/soziologe-nassehi-glaubt-nicht-dass-proteste-gegen-afd-helfen-19476366.html (may be behind paywall)
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