Toilet brush becomes city protest symbol

[The Straight Story]

Toilet brush becomes city protest symbol

A toilet brush has become the unlikely symbol of ongoing protests in Hamburg as the city was hit with another night of violence on Wednesday. It comes as the US embassy issued a travel warning to its citizens.

Police established a restricted zone, Gefahrengebiet, in the centre of Hamburg on Saturday morning, following protests before Christmas and a series of attacks on police officers.

It covers the city’s nightlife area, red light district and old town and gives police extra powers to stop, search and ban people from the area.

But so far it has done little to quell the violence between left-wing groups and the police.

http://www.thelocal.de/20140109/toilet-brush-becomes-symbol-of-hamburg-protests

[Vincardog]

1. When will the left-wing groups quit attacking the police?

[seveneyes]

2. What are they protesting?

Nothing in the report mentioned anything about their reasons for getting violent. What's up?

[stevenleser]

4. Good question. Was there 19 months ago. Low cost of living, excellent mass transit. Various other

good services. Good wages. Not sure what's going on.

[Ken Burch]

6. They're protesting the closing of a left-wing cultural and political centre, the "Rota Flora".

It's also a place where some of those unclean non-"Aryan" refugees are protected from deportation.

Basically, it's what you'd get if Occupy had had a physical headquarters instead of park encampments.

The city(under a Social Democratic government, ironically)is backing the right-wing owner's demand to force the left out and replace Rota Flora with, most likely, some sort of soulless office bloc.

[The Straight Story]

7. Related to this:

http://www.thelocal.de/20131223/hundreds-injured-in-hamburg-riots

Hundreds of police officers and protesters were injured in the worst riots Hamburg has seen for years over the weekend in a mass demonstration over gentrification.

A protest took place on Saturday afternoon over the eviction of squatters from the Rote Flora building in the Schanze district. The building has served as a home for squatters as well as a cultural and political meeting point for left-wing activists for more than 24 years. But the owner of the building, Klausmartin Kretschmer, has demanded that they leave.

This prompted a demonstration which turned violent. Police put the number of protesters at 7,300 and said 4,700 were from the far-left scene, while organizers said more than 10,000 people took part.

According to police, 120 of their officers were injured, 19 of whom badly. They came under attack from stones, bottles and fireworks. Police reacted with water cannon and tear gas. Left-wing groups said 500 protesters were injured.

[GeorgeGist]

3. Gefahrengebiet

[Ken Burch]

5. Unfortunately, Mel probably knows a LOT more German than we'd like to think.

Remember, his dad is a freaking Holocaust denier.

[Ken Burch]

8. According to Bing Translator, "Gefarhengebiet" means "Danger Zone".

(somebody will start a club with that name in the East Village, probably by summer, given how these things go).