Friday 10, November
Berlin lights up Brandenburger Tor 85 years on from Nazi pogrom
85 years ago, on November 9, 1938, a huge wave of antisemitic violence spread across Germany in what would come to be known as Kristallnacht. In Berlin, the synagogue on Fasanenstraße was destroyed, countless Jewish businesses were looted and people openly attacked in the streets.
Yesterday, to mark the sombre anniversary, Berlin lit up the Brandenburg Gate for over three hours with an illuminated blue star of David and the sentence “NIE WIEDER IST JETZT!”, “never again is now”.
Posting on X, Berlin’s mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) made an explicit connection between the anniversary and recent antisemitic incidents, which included an attempted attack on a synagogue in Berlin: “This message is more relevant today than ever. Since the events of the past few weeks at the latest, the message can only be: Never again is now!”
