Germany’s Extreme Right Mobilizes Against Gay Pride in Growing Counter‑Protests

Berlin, Germany – 4 July 2025 – Right‑wing extremist groups across Germany are orchestrating counter‑demonstrations and protest actions at LGBTQ+ Pride events—including Christopher Street Day (CSD) marches—to promote “traditional family values” while directly confronting queer visibility.

In cities such as Eberswalde and Leipzig, AfD members and neo‑Nazi activists have appeared at or near Pride gatherings, chanting hostile slogans and raising tensions—even as peaceful crowds march. Police have deployed significant security forces to maintain order and protect participants.

Organisers are increasingly concerned: at least one Pride event in Regensburg had to be reconfigured due to an unspecified “abstract risk situation.” Meanwhile, in eastern Germany, anti-LGBTQ+ flare protests have become almost routine at major parades.

Activists warn the rise of these demonstrations reflects a broader trend in which far‑right political factions—including AfD and nationalist movements—weaponize LGBTQ+ rights as a wedge issue to stir social division and stoke electoral gains.

Germany continues to rank among Europe’s most LGBTQ+‑friendly nations, with legal protections including same‑sex marriage, adoption and trans self‑identification. Yet the surge in public hate crimes and intimidation marks a troubling reversal, particularly in conservative areas prone to far‑right influence.