Thousands protested in Berlin on Tuesday evening against Chancellor Friedrich Merz, amid growing public criticism of his perceived anti-migrant and racist rhetoric.
More than 7,500 protesters, mostly young women, gathered at Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party headquarters to express their outrage over his controversial "cityscape" remarks last week, in which he claimed that migrants and refugees harmed the physical appearance of German towns.
After receiving immediate criticism, Merz doubled down on his remarks Monday, urging people to "ask your daughters" what he meant.
Some have criticized this as racist because it implies that immigrant men are more likely to commit sexual harassment or other crimes, which is simply not supported by data.
Luisa Neubauer, Germany's most prominent climate activist, who organized the rally, told the rally that Merz's statements "are nothing but unacceptable, discriminatory, and comprehensively racist."
