Beer, bratwurst and conspiracy: Inside a meeting of Germany’s far-right AfD
CNN
A village in Brandeburg, north-eastern Germany, made up of a crossroad and 80 residents, became a microcosm of the country when the far-right Alternative fur Deutschland came to visit.
A village in Brandeburg, north-eastern Germany, made up of a crossroad and 80 residents, became a microcosm of the country last week. As darkness pressed in on Freienthal, protesters whistled and brandished soccer-style red cards at cars heading toward the local village hall. Outside the hall, people grabbed a beer and a bratwurst before taking their seats inside, ignoring calls from the protesters down the road to come and talk. They came for an evening of conversation with the Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD), Germany’s leading far-right party. To one camp, this meeting represented a call for political change; to the other, a risk to German democracy. That vehement disagreement is one being played out across the nation as it heads towards regional elections in September. After far-right gains in several European countries, most notably in the Netherlands and Italy, Germany may follow suit.