The Christopher Street Day (CSD) in Dresden turns necessity into virtue: Since the Saxony State Directorate and the Dresden Administrative Court do not recognize the event in its entirety as a gathering, there will now be, every day alongside the planned street festival, a parade. The City of Dresden has allowed the organizers to “adjust the modalities of the street festival so that it can be viewed as a gathering by objective third parties,” the organizers stated. The CSD is planned for June 4–6.
“With this option we will take advantage of it and submit a gathering concept expanded by two additional parades,” CSD chief Ronald Zenker told the German Press Agency. The “alternative option of applying for special-use permits including the numerous additional required applications, concepts and reports is not feasible for the CSD.” The CSD is organized on a voluntary basis and cannot meet the demands placed on large commercial events.
“The 33rd CSD Dresden is also not a commercial large-scale event, but a gathering. We find the Administrative Court’s reasoning in the provisional legal protection procedure incomprehensible and will file a complaint with the Higher Administrative Court for review,” Zenker added.
Authority: Assembly and event are different things
The sticking point was a decision by the Saxony State Directorate. The LDS had decided at the end of March that the CSD in Dresden could not be classified in full as a gathering. Only the parade would count as a gathering, not the multi-day street festival (TheColu.mn reported).
The CSD street festival, with vendor booths, food offerings and stage programs, should legally be regarded as an event, the LDS emphasized. The parade on the final day, where political expressions are at the forefront, is, by contrast, a gathering in the sense of assembly law.
City of Dresden criticizes the Saxony State Directorate’s decision
In Dresden City Hall, the decision provoked confusion. Mayor Dirk Hilbert (FDP), who has served as patron of the Dresden CSD multiple times, pledged support. After the Dresden Administrative Court let the organizers’ urgent request against the classification as an event fail, the city again offered assistance.
“The CSD belongs to Dresden as much as the Frauenkirche does, with its crucial aim of advancing equality for queer people. The city administration will, regardless of the legal form, do everything it can to ensure that the political street festival can take place again this year. Our offices and staff are ready to support the CSD if that is desired,” Hilbert said.
