With the campaign “Our future in our hands” the socialist organizations International Youth and Solidarity Network from Halle (Saale) and Sangerhausen want to show people a real perspective around the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt. In an interview with Perspective Online they talked about their goals and initial successes.

Can you briefly introduce your campaign? What does “Our Future in Our Hands” stand for?

The campaign was launched for the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt in 2026. We as a solidarity network and international youth have launched an action over several months in both Halle (Saale) and Sangerhausen. One goal was to talk to people about how they feel about the elections. We wanted to find out which topics particularly concern them. Now after the elections, fear of the AfD and the rise of fascism is particularly rampant.

Our motto “Our future in our hands” is intended to emphasize that we are not just about talking, but also about acting. Which is why we also bring in a future perspective with the fight for socialism. With the perspective of socialism we manage to fight against the feeling of powerlessness, which is becoming more present, especially after the election results.

State election in Saxony-Anhalt: How did the AfD win and how does it want to govern?

How do you classify events surrounding the election and the election results in Saxony-Anhalt?

Basically, we have to say that the election result did not come out of nowhere. The fact that the AfD would become the strongest force was already clear from the election forecasts over the weeks and months. What the election results show us is also clear: the AfD manages to make workers believe with its lies that it is an actual alternative. This is also reflected in the fact that the AfD is particularly popular among poorer people.

The distrust of current politics or other parties is of course not unfounded. It's also quite logical that workers are longing for perspective. This is exactly where we want to start and show that the AfD does not offer this. Through more rearmament, social cuts, hatred, agitation and division, we will no longer have any money in our pockets at the end of the month.

You had a demonstration in Halle the day after the elections with over 1,000 people. Who came to your demo and what brought people into the streets in Halle (Saale)?

The fact that so many people were on the streets last Monday shows that many people feel the need to act. Waiting for improvement through the next election is not enough for many people. There were mainly young people on the streets, some of whom are now starting to become politicized.

When we saw the results, it was clear to many young people that something had to be done. With our demo we created a very good starting point and were able to fulfill exactly this need for a short time. But we also want to ensure that people stay active. The next demonstration will follow next Thursday, but there will also be numerous other activities as part of the campaign in which you can actively participate.

Injured after shots fired at anti-fascist demonstration in Halle (Saale)

At the end of the demonstration, shots were fired at at least three participants. How do you classify the incident a week later?

The case caused a lot of uproar and also attracted a lot of attention. However, we are not talking polemically about a fascist attack with gunshots, but rather we have to say clearly: something like this has happened several times at August-Bebel-Platz in Halle and is not a unique phenomenon. There was no mass panic because no one even noticed the shots. At least until information came that a person was bleeding. Nevertheless, we can assume that the attack targeted an anti-fascist demonstration and we take that seriously.

The aim of such attacks is to intimidate us as anti-fascists. These attacks will continue to multiply now, even with an AfD government. We must not give the attack this effect and we will not retreat through something like this. Such an attack also shows us that we have to fight even more resolutely and confirms us in our fight.

Negotiations to form a government are now beginning in Saxony-Anhalt. What can we expect?

Here, too, you shouldn't panic. However, one scenario currently seems very realistic. Namely, that the AfD will form the government and the Prime Minister. No matter whether alone or in a minority government. Regardless of whether it is with the BSW or perhaps even the CDU, it remains to be seen how the AfD actually manages to get its planned laws passed and passed. We should also not underestimate the impact on the federal level, as the AfD will get a place in the Federal Council and the instability will also spread beyond Saxony-Anhalt.

What we can expect in Saxony-Anhalt is definitely a very unstable government constellation. This also happens if the state government is without the participation of the AfD. In addition, further steps to the right will have to be taken in order to be able to make any decisions at all. We will continue to feel the consequences of the elections in the coming period. That's why we have to continue to emphasize our own activation and our own organization.

State election in Saxony-Anhalt: Don't be afraid of the fascists

The end of the election doesn't mean your campaign is over. What other activities are planned and what do you hope to gain from them?

As already mentioned, we are planning a demonstration in which we want to have a more targeted conversation with people and pursue the stated goal of activation and organization. We want to continue to take the fears and concerns of ourselves and all other workers seriously and build on them in our work. We also try to find an easy way to get started with actions using various methods. We also want to show in concrete fights that we consistently stand against fascism and thus win the trust of our class.

In the future, we want to create more offers and opportunities to be anti-fascist, to become active and to plan and carry out actions against fascism ourselves. Because we will not defeat fascism at home alone, but only together on the streets, in the neighborhoods, in schools and universities, at work and ultimately organized as a class, united in struggle!

The post“With the election results it was clear to many that something had to be done.” – Interview with “Our future in our hands.”appeared firstperspective.