VOLKSBÜHNE GEGEN MILITARISIERUNG
Berlin is gearing up for war: conscription centres are to be set up in empty department stores, factories are being converted into arms production facilities, and on every street corner there is Bundeswehr advertising. All the signs point to militarisation. From summer 2027, hundreds of thousands of young people are to be conscripted for the first time in years, assessed to determine whether they are physically and mentally ‘fit’ to kill and die for Germany in case of emergency. For the first time since the Second World War, Germany is dreaming of having the largest army in Europe.
Politicians claim that this military build-up defends our freedom and democracy – and therefore also your right to oppose conscription – even though you will ultimately still have to go to war (or attend a medical examination).
In many places, the school strikes against conscription were met with requirements for medical certificates, lock-ins in school buildings and police action. Nevertheless, in over 130 towns and cities, around 50,000 students protested, thereby demonstrating that they are not prepared to subordinate their future to Germany’s military interests.
The Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz stands in solidarity with all conscientious objectors and opposes the reintroduction of compulsory military service. We believe that security is not achieved through rearmament and coercion, but through self-determination, social justice and international solidarity.
In this spirit, we follow Gustav Landauer:
“War is the name given to the state in which several hundred thousand men face one another, ready to murder one another using the most sophisticated technical means, following decades of preparation. […] You can already see how strange the answer sounds: we who are active must not be active, but inactive, so that war cannot be possible.”
On 3 May, we’d like to invite you to the Grüner Salon: for a panel discussion and an open consultation on the topic of conscientious objection.
Afterwards, there will be a workshop where we’ll prepare together for the school strike on 8 May: designing banners and placards, and screen-printing on textiles.
Feel free to bring your own clothes.
Come along! Admission is free!
This is united salon @gruenersalon.berlin!
