A German anti-Nazi group, Berlin Against Nazis, launched an Android app that will allow the locations of extreme right-wing protests to reach a mass audience, reported Salon.
Extreme-right and Nazi groups have been on the rise in Germany as thousands of people associated with neo-Nazi groups have been conducting large anti-asylum and anti-Islam demonstrations. However, the app, Gegen Nazis (Against Nazis), maps the locations of these demonstrations so that more liberal, open-minded groups can conduct counter-protests.
“It also let’s you know where there are planned protests against these demonstrations so users can show their faces in solidarity with refugees, against racism and against anti-Semitism,” said Berlin Against Nazis project manager Jessica Zeller.
Right-wing extremism has seen a recent resurgence in Germany, as indicated by the large protests. The largest neo-Nazi group is the National Democratic Party (NPD), and the party sponsors massive protests.
The politics of right-wing hate has even seeped into politics, as five members of NPD are members of the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern parliament in eastern Germany.
However, Berlin Against Nazis wants to make clear the fact they’re “not calling everyone Nazis.” Zeller said “what counts is what people say in their demonstrations and what they stand for – not direct affiliations with NPD.”
Another group that has caught the attention of Berlin Against Nazis is Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West. Last Tuesday, 17,500 people gathered in support of the anti-Islam message conveyed by the Patriotic Europeans.
Much like in America, right-wing extremism is a hateful plague that divides the people and accentuates cultural differences. It does not promote solidarity, nor does it celebrate the cultural differences which have tremendous benefit to the people. Berlin Against Nazis uses technology to further solidify the people against a hateful and dividing cause.
