The idea of excessive Islamic influence in western countries is one that is raised by far-right groups across Europe and the US. The latest group to gain traction is Germany’s Pegida (“Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the Occident”) movement. The right-wing populist movement originated in the eastern city of Dresden, where it has been holding rallies for the last three months. These began with just a few hundred attendees, but now regularly bring out thousands. A rally this week attracted 18,000 people – record numbers.
Pegida holds street protests against what it claims is a pernicious rise in Islamic influence over western countries. It has broadened its appeal by consciously distancing itself from the far-right, banning neo-Nazi symbols and slogans at its rallies. The group’s Facebook page says that it opposes “preachers of hate, regardless of what religion” and “radicalism, regardless of whether religiously or politically motivated”. It adds: “Pegida is for resistance against anti-woman political ideology that emphasises violence, but not against integrated Muslims living here”.
Despite these assertions, however, the group also raises general complaints about immigrants and refugees, drawing on popular anger about these issues. Supporters say that they are part of a movement across Europe, of people who are angry about their governments' lenient immigration policies. In addition to this mainstream support, it also draws support from Germany’s known far-right or neo-Nazi groups, many of which have congratulated Pegida's effective tactic of using peaceful demonstrations to spread its message. Some commentators have drawn a comparison to groups like the English Defence League (EDL), a street movement which also claims it opposes Islamic extremism rather than all Muslims. Many describe the EDL as a neo-Nazi group.
The Pegida movement is not happening without opposition. The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, condemned the group in unusually strong terms in her New Year’s address, when she urged Germans to stay away from the rallies in Dresden. She said that when Pegida demonstrators chant “we are the people” at rallies, “they actually mean ‘you don’t belong because of your religion or your skin’.”
In addition to condemnations from senior German politicians, counter-demonstrations have sprung up, with thousands of people marching in Berlin, Cologne, Dresden and Stuttgart. Police in Berlin said that around 5,000 counter-demonstrators blocked Pegida supporters, while a German news agency reported that 22,000 anti-Pegida protestors turning out in Stuttgart, Muenster and Hamburg. Organisers of the opposing demonstrations said that they turning out to promote tolerance and stand against discrimination and xenophobia. A planned Pegida protest in Cologne was called off after its planned route was blocked.
Dresden, the city where it all started, saw far smaller numbers of counter-demonstrators. It is worth noting that Dresden is a city with very few immigrants and Muslims, reflecting a trend also seen in the UK, where support for anti-immigration parties and groups tends to be highest in areas where immigration is lowest.
The counter-demonstrations are on a huge scale – countrywide, the anti-racist protesters far outnumber those supporting Pegida. But in Germany, as elsewhere in Europe and the world, these views do not exist in a vacuum. To truly tackle a movement like Pegida, one must consider the wider anti-immigration, anti-Muslim sentiments espoused throughout the mainstream.
