AfD | AfD undesirable as a neighbor

Student Jörn shows the signature lists before he throws them in. Photo: nd/Andreas Fritsche With its move into the house at Köllnischer Park in Berlin-Mitte, the AfD is trying to "position itself in the middle of society and present itself as a normal party." But she has to expect resistance. This is what it says in a petition that has so far been signed by around 24,800 people. On Wednesday evening, student Jörn from the “Center Loves Diversity” alliance posted the signatures that had been submitted so far into the office building’s mailbox.

Jörn is one of the students at the Berlin Psychological University, which is housed in this office building. He and other people who study psychology in the building, learn German, work for the municipal utilities, the aid organization Oxfam or the Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund or who live in this area do not agree with the AfD as their new neighbor.

The district in the heart of Berlin is colorful and diverse and offers people from all over the world a home, a working environment and a place to party. The AfD is partly a right-wing extremist party and is fighting this diversity, the petition says. With AfD employees on the fifth floor of the building at Köllnischer Park, you no longer feel safe here.

Joachim Baur from “Mitte Loves Diversity” reports that moving boxes with AfD written on them are brought to the fifth floor, which eyewitnesses told him. It was assumed that it was the AfD federal office, which had to leave its previous domicile in Berlin-Reinickendorf. The party had rented offices, an event hall and parking spaces in the underground car park there. But the contracts are expiring and the originally negotiated option for an extension is of no use to the AfD.

»You don't need any previous political experience. All you need is an anti-fascist, democratic attitude.«

One of the reasons the landlord is angry with the party is because they used the courtyard for their election party without his permission on the evening of the federal election in February 2025. After the incident, he even wanted to get him kicked out immediately, but he couldn't get his way in court. The AfD should now vacate the first rooms at the end of September and gradually all the rest by the end of the year.

The party had already informed the “nd” on July 23rd that the AfD federal headquarters would not be located in the house at Köllnischer Park and that the AfD had not rented any rooms there, but did not answer questions then or now. Apparently a real estate company affiliated with the AfD has rented the fifth floor and is making it available to them. According to reports, another tenant has just canceled their premises because of this. The “nd” has also asked about this matter, but has not yet received an answer.

On Wednesday evening there was a “Mitte loves diversity” rally in front of the building. The approximately 200 participants sing: “On the barricades, resist!” A woman plays the melody on the horn. Student Jörn moderates the meeting so skillfully, as if he had done something like this many times before. That's not the case at all: he's still new to the alliance, only taking part in his second campaign.

“We need everyone,” says Joachim Baur. »You don't need any previous political experience. You just need an anti-fascist, democratic attitude. The arrival of the AfD would not stop the resistance. “We will never remain neutral in the face of misanthropy,” assures a speaker at the rally. You won't wait until you're forced out of the house. Because there is a fear that the AfD wants to expand to new levels little by little.

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