'We are not afraid': Black community protests racism in Berlin

Hundreds of protesters attend the ‘Safe Spaces for Black People’ demonstration outside the Volksbühne Theatre at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz in Berlin on Friday, August 21, 2026. Police officers stand watch during the protest. [Betty Njeru, Standard]

Police in Berlin on Friday, August 21, thwarted a potential infiltration attempt by alleged right-wing populists and streamers at a protest meant to create safe spaces for the Black community.

At least two right-wing streamers were arrested at the demonstrations, which drew nearly 500 people just outside the Volksbühne on Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz, the venue where a swimming event for young Black children was cancelled last week.

Friday's protest, attended by several people of colour, was held in response to racist threats and intimidation targeting Black people in Germany.

Rosalina Koch, one of the organisers, criticised the silence of the wider public, warning that it risks growing into a bigger problem.

"There's something deeply troubling about how loudly anti-racism is performed in this city, while anti-Black racism is allowed to happen right in front of everyone's face. Before you even cancelled the swimming event, you should have offered to help," she said.

Hundreds of protesters attend the ‘Safe Spaces for Black People’ demonstration outside the Volksbühne Theatre at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz in Berlin on Friday, August 21, 2026. Police officers stand watch during the protest. [Betty Njeru, Standard]

Ethiopian activist Castoya Nara, who was involved in a brief altercation with the alleged right-wing streamers, urged Black people across Europe to present a united front and reject division. "It's our right to be anywhere in the world. This is why we are here today," Nara said.

The main organisers, Each One Teach One, a publicly funded non-governmental organisation, along with other cultural associations, are now demanding an immediate end to the hostilities, in a statement addressed to the Berlin Senate and the House of Representatives.

"Our leaders must consistently implement and strengthen the state Anti-Discrimination Law (LADG) and the General Equal Treatment Act (AGG), and take concrete measures to ensure that racist intimidation and agitation campaigns no longer influence cultural programming in the future," the statement read in part.

Hundreds of protesters attend the ‘Safe Spaces for Black People’ demonstration outside the Volksbühne Theatre at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz in Berlin on Friday, August 21, 2026. Police officers stand watch during the protest. [Betty Njeru, Standard]

The Berlin Council for the Arts echoed these sentiments, stating that outrage and racist mobilisation must not determine who gets space when marginalised groups are under attack.

International Women's Space co-founder Jennifer Kamau told The Standard that the situation facing Berlin's Black community urgently needs to be addressed, warning that it is "getting out of hand."

"There are no safe spaces for Black people. When a society starts attacking children, you know it has gone too far. But it's important for us to be here today, to show that we are not afraid… there is strength in numbers," she said.

The cancellation of the swimming event, originally planned for last week at the Volksbühne, has since sparked public outrage, reigniting the debate over racism and discrimination against marginalised communities.