CSD in Neustrelitz draws 1,000 three weeks after Berlin terror attack
Around 1,000 people joined the Christopher Street Day in Neustrelitz on Saturday without incident, three weeks after a vehicle attack at the Berlin CSD killed one woman and injured 31.
Berlin attack overshadows CSD season
On 25 July 2026, a vehicle drove into a crowd at the Berlin Christopher Street Day in the Tiergarten, killing one woman and injuring 31 people. Investigators classify the incident as an Islamist terror attack. The attack prompted organisers of subsequent CSD events across Germany to revise their security concepts. In Neustrelitz, the association Queer-Strelitz had already planned heightened protective measures due to a rising number of anti-queer incidents and then further overhauled its security concept after the Berlin attack, including altering the demonstration route.
Neustrelitz CSD proceeds without incident
Around 1,000 people attended the Christopher Street Day in Neustrelitz, in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, on Saturday, 15 August. Police reported no incidents during the approximately three-hour march through the city. A rally on the Neustrelitz Marktplatz included a memorial for the victims and those affected by the Berlin attack. A counter-demonstration ran parallel to the CSD, with 15 participants according to police. Several individuals from that group are now under investigation on suspicion of incitement to hatred (Volksverhetzung), after some participants allegedly displayed banned gestures.
- CSD participants
- 1000
- Counter-demonstration
- 15
- Vehicle drives into crowd at Berlin CSD in Tiergarten; 1 woman killed, 31 injured
- Around 1,000 attend CSD in Neustrelitz; three-hour march proceeds without incidents
- 15-person counter-demonstration; several under investigation for suspected incitement to hatred
Steinmeier appeals for self-determination
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier used a guest article for Zeit Online, published ahead of CSD events in several German cities over the weekend, to call for self-determination and safety for queer people. He described the Berlin attack as "an attack on all of us, on our open society" and stressed that, under Germany's constitution, everyone has the right to determine their own identity.
In an open society, it must be possible for everyone to go their own way, not only without fear, but also with pride; not only in private spaces, but also in public.
Steinmeier said it apparently could not be said often enough that, according to Germany's constitution and convictions, everyone has the right to self-determination, especially where it concerns the innermost aspects of each person: the expression of their own personality, love and partnership, physicality and sexuality.
Drese defends freedom and solidarity
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern's Social Minister Stefanie Drese (SPD) addressed the crowd in Neustrelitz, emphasising the state government's solidarity with participants. She said the Berlin attack reverberated far beyond the capital, noting that torn-down rainbow flags, attacks on queer institutions, and CSD events held under heavy police protection are not isolated cases. The attack in Berlin had shown in a disturbing way that escalation could reach a new dimension, she said.
Those who live queer visibility today, unfortunately, no longer live safely everywhere as a matter of course.
Drese said she had great respect for those who came to Neustrelitz despite the security situation, calling the CSD not only a day of remembrance and demonstration but also a symbol of freedom and an expression of resolve and solidarity.
We do not give in. We do not cede space to extremists, radicals, and people who want to destroy our free society. We will not let anyone take away either our free life or our love.
