Green youth in turmoil: Jette Nietzard ensures great controversy!

Green youth in turmoil: Jette Nietzard ensures great controversy!

Baden-Württemberg, Deutschland - Currently, the tensions between the Greens and their youth organization, the Green Youth, are particularly pronounced. An older member of the party has made it clear that he would be concerned if his children joined the green youth. These worries were recently fueled by an Instagram post by Jette Nietzard, spokeswoman for the Green Youth, in which they wore a sweater with the provocative initials "ACAB" (all police officers are bastards). Her statements have contributed to controversy, also because in the past it has already appeared with other controversial statements, such as injuries that suffer men who suffer, and the presumption of innocence in political parties. Winfried Kretschmann, Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg, even publicly demanded that Nietzard leave the party.

Irene Mihalic, Parliamentary Managing Director of the Greens parliamentary group, has called for Nietzard's apology for her statements about police officers. The situation has the potential to have negative effects on the upcoming state election 2024. Cem Özdemir, the top candidate, faces considerable challenges according to surveys. In this context, the green youth criticizes the mother party because it moved too much into the political center.

The role of the Green Youth

The Green Youth has experienced a drastic upheaval in the past few months. The last federal board came out of the party in autumn 2023, and Sarah-Lee Heinrich, the former spokeswoman, also distanced itself from the Greens. Jette Nietzard and her co-chair Jakob Blasel, who have been at the top of the Green Youth since mid-October, have clearly spoken out against a possible coalition with the CDU and CSU. Nietzard even referred to this as a "nightmare for future generations" and pointed out that the Union does not stand for a decent policy.

Both chairpersons also criticize the content of their own party. Nietzard expressed concerns about the candidate Franziska Brantner and demanded that the course of the Green Youth had to become braver in social and ecological issues. Their demands include increasing the minimum wage to 15 euros and measures against rising rents.

frustration of young voters

The green youth sees a deep frustration with young voters about German politics. Nietzard noticed that in the last Bundestag election the left for topics were chosen, which are also anchored in the election programs of the Greens. She regrets that these topics were not sufficiently presented in the election campaign. Voilà, the massive losses of the Greens in the Bundestag election bring depression in the party and concerns about the current campaign strategy.

KO chairman Jakob Blasel emphasized the urgent need for a fundamental change in politics. It explains that the opposition shape important social debates and must challenge the government. The pressure of the 2019 climate movement serves as a positive example. The Green Youth hopes to be able to play a new role in the opposition and is planning talks with Robert Habeck about his own, further positions for the Bundestag election 2025.

Overall, the situation reflects a broader phenomenon in German politics: tensions between political parties and their youth organizations are not unusual. The coming months will show how the Greens and the Green Youth are facing each other and whether they can successfully solve the internal conflicts.

For more information, visit the articles from Frankfurter Rundschau and Tagesspiegel .