As of: February 18, 2024, 4:11 p.m
By: Dominik Stallein
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Peaceful glow: With light sources and warning vests, the protest march illuminated the old town of Wolfratshausen on Friday evening.
© Hans Lippert
Hundreds are protesting for democracy in Wolfratshausen and all age groups are taking part: On Friday there was a light demonstration in the old town.
Wolfratshausen – The few posters were barely readable in the evening darkness.
The glow and sparkle were also much more the focus than the sayings on cardboard.
A little boy scurried between the high-visibility vests towards the loudspeaker where his friends were standing.
At that time, Martin Lorenz's voice echoed through that same loudspeaker.
The 40-year-old is the frontman of the protest against right-wing extremism in Loisachstadt.
Together with some colleagues, he initiated the “We together for democracy” light parade through the old town on Friday.
Demo against right-wing extremism: A sparkle runs through Loisachstadt
According to police, 350 people joined the protest.
The organizers even counted over 420 demonstrators.
“I’m so proud that you all came,” Lorenz said into his microphone.
This is “very important”.
Lorenz is concerned about right-wing extremist tendencies, which are sometimes discussed more loudly and sometimes more quietly: “Our democracy is at risk.
Only together, visibly and loudly can we stand against this.” The ideas of a remigration of people of non-German origin from the Federal Republic, which have now been publicly discussed, still concern him, who has lived in Germany for 37 years.
Lorenz emphasized that he neither felt any serious fear for his well-being nor did he want to start a demonstration out of personal concern.
His own fate as an example is still important.
“The point is to show that citizens who cannot be seen to have a migration background would also be affected.”
Martin Lorenz helped organize the demo – and is “proud that so many came.”
© Hans Lippert
“That’s why we have the rule of law”: Protester calls for criminal prosecution of extremists
Martin Lorenz, who has not yet been politically active, no longer wants to accept what is currently being debated: “It is time for these people to finally be held criminally responsible for their statements and actions.
That’s why we have a constitutional state.”
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Eva Greif, a former history teacher and active volunteer in the bathhouse association and the Wolfratshausen Museum, explained how quickly the National Socialists were able to undermine this constitutional state in the 1930s and turn a - yes, very shaky at the time - democracy into an autocratic leader state to shape.
With the known consequences.
“In November 1938 the Wolfratshauser Tagblatt wrote: Wolfratshausen became free of Jews.”
It was in the days after the Kristallnacht pogroms.
“And this is just the beginning of the great human catastrophe,” said Greif.
“We have a responsibility to prevent a repeat.”
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Peaceful demonstration in Wolfratshausen: “Resist against fascism”
The protest march through the old town was the peaceful demonstration of cohesion that the initiators had hoped for - with one exception at the very end.
Beforehand, the glowing entourage paraded along Marktstrasse, Sauerlacher Strasse and Bahnhofstrasse - partly singing, mostly sparkling.
“Defend yourself, resist fascism here in the country,” sang along seniors, families and younger participants alike.
Lots of young people there: the demo attracts all age groups
“I think it’s very nice that there are so many young people here,” said Ingrid Reichert.
Some groups of five or six young people had joined the demonstration.
A good sign for Reichert.
She really wanted to support the demonstration.
“I don’t know if we can do anything about it – but doing nothing and staying at home would certainly be wrong,” she said.
The woman from Wolfratshausen hoped that the protest would create lasting public awareness: “Hopefully people will become even more aware of what it’s actually about.”
A Monday demonstrator also comes to the open microphone: the reactions are controversial
In one of Katja and Hilmar Toppe's children's school classes, the remigration fantasies of the right-wing fringe were discussed.
“Out of 30 children, three were allowed to stay,” reported the mother during the tour.
What Hilmar Toppe liked: “The protest is so peaceful, it’s not a sensational demonstration.”
That was important to the initiators.
That's why Lorenz intervened at the final "open mic" when some people on Marienplatz whistled and booed the speaker: Dr.
Josef Hingerl was the first to take the microphone.
Hingerl, a lawyer, is one of the faces of the Monday demonstrations in Wolfratshausen - and was apparently not well-liked by some of the participants on Friday.
The fact that Hingerl thanked the participants for their commitment to democracy and the rule of law was almost drowned out by boos.
Others acknowledged his speech with applause.
A woman from Wolfratshausen explained that she deals a lot with refugees.
"When I think about someone wanting to send them back..."
She didn't finish the sentence.
“I am glad that we are here together” to stand up for democracy and humanity.
A teenager took the microphone.
“Every demonstration takes percentages away from the right-wing extremists,” he said.
“We have to keep going.
We must not stop demonstrating.”
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