How do they fit together – the punks from them dead pants and the ladies from the “grandmas against the right”? Well, gradually Campino and Co. are getting to an age when they could be busy with grandchildren; Above all, however, the two groups are united by their commitment to opposing everything that is right-wing. So it was a perfect fit that on Friday afternoon the trouser song “Welcome to Germany” resounded over Odeonsplatz, where the grandmas held their final fall rally. They had already demonstrated four times since the end of October under the motto “Yes to democracy, loud and visible”.
“Grannies Against the Right” is a non-partisan citizens’ initiative that was founded five years ago in Vienna and now has around a hundred local groups in Germany. The local alliance was only awarded the “Münchner Lichtblicke” sponsorship prize six months ago for its civil society commitment against anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia and misogyny. The Munich grandmas see themselves primarily as a counter-movement to the strolling lateral thinkers. “We’re not leaving the streets to the enemies of democracy,” explains Elisabeth Redler, spokeswoman for Omas. She sees enemies as all those who use the current crises to stir up fears and divide society. “Don’t hit it and destroy it, but get creative,” Redler demands: “Courage instead of anger, heart instead of rush and solidarity – these are our slogans.”
Among her listeners were not only grannies, but also a few grandpas and even some daughters and grandchildren. Around 60 people stayed longer in front of the white pavilion with the white umbrellas around it; passers-by stopped for a moment. “You closed the age gap in the fight against the right, I’m grateful to you for that,” said Micky Wenngatz, SPD city councilor and chairwoman of the “Munich is colorful” association. The grandmothers not only act against the right, but also show solidarity with the climate movement “Fridays for Future”, in which their grandchildren’s generation is active.
“Being old doesn’t mean being dumb,” Redler recalled, citing a proverb of African origin: “All evil needs to triumph is the silence of the majority.”