Around 1.5 Million People Celebrate CSD in Cologne – Politicians Warn of Growing Queer Hostility

Political Prominence at the Front

Among the speakers was North Rhine-Westphalia's Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU), who attended a CSD for the first time. The 73-year-old told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur: "Zugegebenermaßen bin ich das erste Mal dabei." He said he was taking part in the CSD because the hostility increasingly worried him. "Ich bin dabei, weil ich mir zunehmend Sorgen mache. Wir haben zunehmend Menschen, die den Anspruch erheben, zu bestimmen, wie man leben muss. Und das ist ein Irrtum." The minister also said: "Der Teil des Staates, für den ich stehe, die Polizei, der schützt alle." He said he found it impressive how creatively and joyfully people were celebrating, and that a million people standing along the roadside and making a statement with that was "auch nicht schlecht."

Roth and Lauterbach with an Eye on Erfurt

At the head of the parade, alongside Reul, were other politicians, including former Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth (Greens), SPD health politician Karl Lauterbach, North Rhine-Westphalia's Economics Minister Mona Neubauer, and Cologne's Mayor Thorsten Burmester. The CSD in Cologne was thus also a march of political prominence from multiple federal and state levels.

Claudia Roth said at the demonstration: "Wir sind heute auch hier in Köln als die größte Demonstration für die Demokratie in unserem Land, und dieses Signal schicken wir nach Erfurt zu den Demokratiefeinden". She was referring to the AfD federal party convention taking place in Erfurt at the same time. Roth called the Cologne demonstration one of the largest events of its kind in Germany and Europe.

History and Motto of the CSD

Karl Lauterbach (SPD) told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur that the CSD was more important than ever "weil die Rechte queerer Menschen zunehmend unter Druck stünden." He also referenced the AfD party convention. Cologne, Lauterbach said, shows that democracy is resilient and colorful.

Voices from the Community

The CSD traces its origins to events in 1969 in New York. Back then, police stormed the "Stonewall Inn" bar in Christopher Street and put an end to a multi-day uprising by gay, lesbian, and trans people. Since then, CSD events around the world have commemorated these events. The English abbreviation LGBTQ+ stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer.

Individual visitors also shared their personal experiences. "Wir werden auf der Straße angespuckt, geschlagen, nur weil wir mit dem Freund Händchen haltend durch die Straße gehen," said Jens Pielhau from the association Cologne Pride, which helped organize the CSD. Pielhau also pointed out that queer people are persecuted worldwide and that homosexuality is punishable in many countries, in some even by death. In Germany, he criticized, two mothers who have a child are not simultaneously recognized as mothers under the German Civil Code.

Security chief Martin Hommel gave a measured assessment of the security situation. The security officer, who has been overseeing the CSD in Cologne for more than 20 years and works with a professional association for event safety, said: "Die Herausforderungen werden größer von Jahr zu Jahr. Nicht nur die Herausforderung an die Infrastruktur etc., sondern auch die Herausforderungen an potenzielle Störungen. Die werden immer vielfältiger." Among other measures, he deploys a weather observer to warn of possible storms. Police said several hundred officers were deployed.

Drag, Protest and Personal Stories

Among the participants were also individuals who brought personal stories with them. Martin, 35, from Gießen, who goes by "Flirty Flamingo" and regularly goes out in rainbow colors, reported: "Da halten die Autos an, es wird irgendwas gerufen. Schimpfwörter. Gesten. Ich werde bespuckt. Im Zug setzen sich die Leute nicht neben mich." He plans to attend around 20 CSD events this year. He came out in his early twenties. "Ich habe meine Eltern angerufen und gesagt: ‚Ich muss euch etwas sagen‘," he recounted. He fears that hard-won rights such as the Transsexuals Act or marriage for all could be rolled back in Germany in the coming years.

A 36-year-old trans rights lawyer named Shanann, originally from Zurich, said: "Ich bin in Deutschland die einzige Rechtsanwältin mit Spezialfach Transrecht." She said she wants her work to help trans people achieve equal rights. She also criticized the inadequate legal protections for many trans people in Germany.

Cologne Pride Takes Stock

Colorful accents were provided by the artists who helped shape the parade's look. Drag Queen Meryl Deep said: "Der Wind weht rau, und vor allem gegen die queere Community." Cologne drag queen "The Only Naomy" also stressed her political role: "Wir sind das Sprachrohr, weil wir Aufmerksamkeit auf uns ziehen. Damit geht auch eine große Verantwortung einher, diese Aufmerksamkeit zu nutzen, um über die Anliegen der queeren Community zu sprechen. Viele von uns sind aktivistisch unterwegs. Wir sind nicht nur schön anzusehen." Drag queens and trans people have "schon immer so ein bisschen die treibende Kraft der Paraden," she added. She said she often has the feeling that drag queens are "einfach nur als medialer Aufhänger gesehen," "aber dahinter steckt viel mehr als schillernde Outfits."

Religious accents were also visible. "Wir haben bei uns in Gießen jetzt eine queere Gruppe, evangelisch. Wir treffen uns einmal im Monat zu gemeinsamen Aktionen," Martin said. Hanni, who identifies as non-binary, simply said: "Ich bin non-binär." Ralf, 64, from Dortmund stood out in an orange plush costume and was a popular selfie partner at the event. Thomas, 58, observed that CSD parades now also take place in smaller towns, "gerade auch dort, wo die AfD stark sei."

The organizers expected more than one million visitors in total over the entire CSD weekend. Uwe Weiler, managing director of the association ColognePride, said: "Wir sind heute hier, weil wir für Diversität stehen, in der Sache gleich sind und dafür demonstrieren." Looking at the political situation in Germany, he said he does his job "nochmal um ein Vielfaches lieber," said Weiler, who has been active for ColognePride for 22 years and has led the association as managing director since 2019. Weiler also pushed back against the argument that queer people take something away from others, citing marriage for all as an example: "Das ist allerdings völliger Unsinn. Das muss einfach in die Köpfe der Menschen." For the future, he called for greater legal equality.

Cologne's Mayor Thorsten Burmester thanked the volunteers: "Mein Dank gilt allen, die sich nicht nur heute, sondern das ganze Jahr ehrenamtlich für den CSD in Köln einsetzen. Happy Pride!"

The organizers expressed satisfaction with the day's events in the evening. Given the scale, the demonstration had not yet concluded by the afternoon, but the march was already well advanced. The organizers announced that they would once again take to the streets next year for the rights of queer people – and once again with a political message against growing queer hostility.