BERLIN — A German far-right party that swept into Parliament last year on a wave of anti-migrant sentiment is holding a march today in the heart of Berlin to protest against the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel, accusing it of ruining Germany by allowing in a wave of refugees.
Alternative for Germany took 12.6 percent of the vote in September’s national election, placing third behind Merkel’s conservative Union bloc and the center-left Social Democrats. After those two agreed to continue their governing coalition, Alternative for Germany became the largest opposition party, a role that traditionally accords parties in Germany a prominent platform to promote their positions in Parliament.
The party’s novice lawmakers have struggled to grasp basic parliamentary procedures and have stood out mainly with blunt attacks on minority groups, particularly Muslims, who made up the majority of the more than 1 million asylum seekers to enter Germany in 2015 and 2016. Co-leader Alice Weidel was formally censured by Parliament earlier this month for describing girls who wear Islamic headscarves as “useless people.”
Today’s rally, starting at Berlin’s main train station and ending at the landmark Brandenburg Gate, is highly unusual for a German political party. While other parties have in recent years supported protests on a variety of issues — from animal welfare to opposing free trade — Alternative for Germany is the sole organizer of the march headlined “Germany’s Future.”
Alternative for Germany has threatened lawsuits against journalists, rival politicians and officials who have criticized it, even as it accuses opponents of using “Nazi methods.” On Wednesday, party officials warned that far-left extremists could try to violently stop its rally in Berlin.
“This isn’t a family excursion where you take your kids along,” said Guido Reil, a party official organizing the rally.
More than a dozen groups have announced plans to stage counterprotests, including artists and a coalition of Berlin music clubs hoping to “blow away” Alternative for Germany with loud techno beats. Berlin police are reportedly planning to put some 2,000 officers on the streets to keep the peace.
David Bebnowski, an expert who studies political protest, said the march could turn into a public relations disaster for Alternative for Germany if it fails to prevent neo-Nazi groups and other extremists from joining its event.