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Germany: Tens of Thousands Say NO! to Racism, NO! to Xenophobia
Saturday's protest counters last week's rally of the far-right Pegida
Jan 10, 2015
Tens of thousands of people are protesting today in the German city of Dresden against racism and xenophobia.
The Saturday rally was organized to counter the weekly racist and anti-Islamic demonstrations that have been taking place in Dresden. The weekly rallies are organized by the far-right Pegida, the German acronym for "Patriotic Europeans against the Islamization of the West."
Last Monday's Pegida rally was the largest so far - drawing an estimated 18,000 neo-Nazis and Islamaphobes.
But Saturday's counter protest mobilized a much larger crowd.
German news agency DPA reported Dresden mayor Helma Orosz telling protesters that their city "won't be split apart by hatred."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has condemned Pegida's "hate campaigns" and has called on Germans to not participate in Pegida rallies.
Many fear that the attacks in France would increase anti-Islam feelings in Germany and benefit PEGIDA.
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Tens of thousands of people are protesting today in the German city of Dresden against racism and xenophobia.
The Saturday rally was organized to counter the weekly racist and anti-Islamic demonstrations that have been taking place in Dresden. The weekly rallies are organized by the far-right Pegida, the German acronym for "Patriotic Europeans against the Islamization of the West."
Last Monday's Pegida rally was the largest so far - drawing an estimated 18,000 neo-Nazis and Islamaphobes.
But Saturday's counter protest mobilized a much larger crowd.
German news agency DPA reported Dresden mayor Helma Orosz telling protesters that their city "won't be split apart by hatred."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has condemned Pegida's "hate campaigns" and has called on Germans to not participate in Pegida rallies.
Many fear that the attacks in France would increase anti-Islam feelings in Germany and benefit PEGIDA.
Tens of thousands of people are protesting today in the German city of Dresden against racism and xenophobia.
The Saturday rally was organized to counter the weekly racist and anti-Islamic demonstrations that have been taking place in Dresden. The weekly rallies are organized by the far-right Pegida, the German acronym for "Patriotic Europeans against the Islamization of the West."
Last Monday's Pegida rally was the largest so far - drawing an estimated 18,000 neo-Nazis and Islamaphobes.
But Saturday's counter protest mobilized a much larger crowd.
German news agency DPA reported Dresden mayor Helma Orosz telling protesters that their city "won't be split apart by hatred."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has condemned Pegida's "hate campaigns" and has called on Germans to not participate in Pegida rallies.
Many fear that the attacks in France would increase anti-Islam feelings in Germany and benefit PEGIDA.
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