During the Christopher Street Day (CSD) in Chemnitz on Saturday, participants were targeted by eggs thrown from unknown individuals. While many marchers managed to move to safety, a man in a wheelchair was particularly struck. The incident was reported, among others, by the Freie Presse (a paywalled article).
According to eyewitness accounts, the eggs flew shortly after the demonstration began from a residence in the city center and hit several parked cars as well as Steffen Fuchs, who is battling cancer and had joined the CSD Chemnitz with a relative from Berlin. “I don’t understand how someone can throw eggs at demonstrators,” his brother-in-law quoted him to the police. Fuchs filed charges of bodily harm and insult against the unknown offender.
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The police confirmed the incident. They have not commented on potential suspects at this time. According to those involved, after the eggings, law enforcement checked several apartments along the affected block.
Never have so many participants
Despite the incident, the march continued, having started around noon with a slight delay and proceeding from the city center to a closing rally in Stadthallenpark. According to organizers, more than 2,000 people took part in the 14th Chemnitz CSD — a new participation record. Four people required medical care for dizziness and panic attacks.
There were no registered or spontaneous counter-demonstrations, according to police; however, some bystanders expressed contempt toward the queer demonstration. Three years prior, CSD Chemnitz hosted a neo-Nazi gathering and several anti-queer attacks (TheColu.mn reported).
Leader of The Left in the state parliament at the CSD
The Chemnitz mayor, Sven Schulze (SPD), had greetings from the organizers delivered to the CSD participants. As the only high-profile politician present, Susanne Schaper, head of The Left faction in the Saxon state parliament, attended the queer demonstration. “It’s time for the times to change,” she shouted from the lead float into the crowd. Other speakers from various organizations drew attention to queer-phobic violence in the region and criticized looming cuts to cultural institutions.
The Chemnitz CSD 2026 carried the motto “Queer stays — culture too.”
