70,000 people celebrate at the CSD in Bremen - but the violence hits!

70,000 people celebrate at the CSD in Bremen - but the violence hits!

Around 29,000 people took part in Christopher Street Day (CSD) in Bremen, a colorful expression of diversity and solidarity in a time marked by challenges. Under the motto “Pride must go on,” participants took a stand against discrimination and exclusion of queer people with loud music and lots of rainbow flags.

The event was mostly peaceful, despite an incident in which a driver drove into barriers and nearly hit a police officer. He could only save himself by jumping to the side. During the arrest, the driver fought back and bit an officer on the hand. Such incidents highlight the need for security precautions, which have intensified in recent years amid rising anti-queer attacks.

Security and solidarity above all

Given the current situation, the CSD parades are clearly protests. As WDR reports, queer people are increasingly taking their place in society, but the Pride season is now accompanied by a sense of threat, particularly with a rise in anti-queer crimes in Germany. In 2024, an average of eight cases were heard every day, and the trend is increasing.

The police are called upon to work more closely with the organizers to ensure the safety of the demonstrators. In Bremen, the Senate actively monitored the event; Rainbow flags flew in front of several departments, and Mayor Andreas Bovenschulte (SPD) emphasized the welcoming culture for the queer community in the Hanseatic city.

Embedded in a long history

The CSDs are the result of a long struggle for equality, as Deutschlandfunk Kultur documents. June marks the beginning of the Pride season, which dates back to the 1969 protests on New York's Christopher Street. These events are a constant reminder of the importance of standing up for the rights of LGBTQI* people and standing up against discrimination.

Fighters like Karl Heinrich Ulrichs, who spoke in Germany in 1867 and called for legal changes, and Magnus Hirschfeld, who founded the first homosexual organization in 1897, laid the foundation for today's movement. However, their work was made very difficult by persecution during the Nazi era and beyond. Historians warn that the achievements of queer rights should never be taken for granted as hostility and attacks against the LGBTQI* community increase.

Developments in recent years have meant that CSDs are no longer just places to celebrate, but also to defend rights and protest against intact discrimination. In general, there are also doubts as to whether the social climate for queer people remains stable, as support is dwindling in some places. Follow-up questions include how politicians, the police and society as a whole respond to the threats and what the queer community needs for its safety and support.

In these turbulent times, the CSD in Bremen remains not only a celebration, but also an important sign for the future of LGBTQI* rights.