Monday 24, July
Homophobic attacks taint a largely peaceful CSD
For most of the thousands of people who took to the streets on Saturday, the day was happy, sunny and peaceful. But across Berlin there were a number of suspected homophobic incidents which showed the city still has some way to go in terms of tolerance.
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One of the most high profile incidents saw hate-filled banners unfurled on the railing of a building complex of the TV Tower on Alexanderplatz. Apparently, the political banners read: “Homo = Volkstod” (gays = death of the people) and included the symbol “III”, which is attributed to the extremist right-wing micro-party, The Third Way.
The other incidents were less attention-grabbing, if no less revolting. At Yorckstraße station in Schöneberg, a passenger was grabbed by the neck when he tried to leave the train by a man who had previously been making homophobic remarks. At Alt-Hohenschönhausen in Lichtenberg, three women who had previously taken part in the demonstration were spat at by passersby. And the evening before the demonstration, a man was insulted and then injured in a fight at Nollendorfplatz when he tried to film his attackers.
These lamentable incidents aside, the day was largely peaceful, with both police and organisers stating that the 84 criminal charges handed out were not unusual in a crowd of several hundred thousand.
