Gen Z Protests Reach Germany as Thousands Rally in 34 Cities Over Costs, Schools and Conscription

Germany's youth-led protest wave reached the streets on Saturday afternoon, as the Gen Z regelt movement opened a nationwide Halloween day of action and thousands gathered in Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, Cologne and more than 30 other cities over living costs, school conditions and plans for compulsory military service.

In Berlin, nearly 4,500 demonstrators had gathered in front of the Brandenburg Gate within the first hour after the official start at 2 p.m., a police spokesperson told a reporter from the dts news agency at the scene. The spokesperson said there had been no significant incidents so far and the situation remained calm. Organizers said they expected more than 10,000 people in the capital and more than 100,000 across the country.

What the movement is demanding

Gen Z regelt, which translates roughly as Gen Z takes charge, says it wants greater investment in education, action on rising living costs and housing, and an end to moves toward compulsory military service. Organizers also cite dilapidated school and university buildings, government spending cuts and climate policy among their complaints, and the movement has stressed that its rallies reject violence.

Reuters reported that more than 160,000 people were expected at demonstrations in 34 cities, while AFP put registrations at about 175,000 people in more than 30 cities. The German figures follow weeks of youth-led protests elsewhere in Europe, including three straight weekends of demonstrations in France over living costs and public services.

Sean Baker, a student at the Technical University of Berlin, told Reuters he would join the protests to call attention to the poor state of buildings on his campus. The group says on its website: "We are young people who are no longer willing to stand by and watch as decisions about our future are made without our voices being heard."

Police prepare, shops board up

German authorities deployed extra police nationwide and about 1,500 additional officers in Berlin, while saying they expected the demonstrations to be largely peaceful. Officials warned that extremist groups could try to exploit the movement, although authorities in Berlin said they had no concrete evidence of planned violence at the main gathering. Along Berlin's Kurfuerstendamm shopping boulevard, some luxury shops boarded up their windows and planned early closures as a precaution.

Germany's national school student umbrella organisation, the BSK, has distanced itself from Gen Z regelt and plans a separate day of protest on November 20.

Part of a wider European wave

The German rallies land on the same weekend that France braces for a third round of nationwide cost-of-living protests, with 70,000 police officers deployed there and demonstrations authorized only outside town centers. CNN reported that more than 550,000 people protested across France on October 17, when officials said more than 3,000 shops were attacked or looted and over 2,700 people were arrested. A nationwide strike and mobilization called by French unions is set for November 5.

Whether the German movement can turn a Halloween turnout into lasting pressure is unclear. Organizers in Berlin were still hoping the crowd at the Brandenburg Gate would more than double as the afternoon went on.