The censorship of anti-war events organized by the International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) at Humboldt University in Berlin has, for now, been defeated. A week ago, the university administration banned three events planned by our student group. Thanks to a strong campaign on campus, we were able to push back this sweeping attack on the democratic rights of students. On Thursday, the university leadership was forced to approve the scheduled events and provide rooms.

We call on all students, school pupils and workers: Don’t miss the anti-war events that the university administration tried to deny you! Help spread the word widely on social media, among friends, classmates, and colleagues:

• Thursday, June 19, 2025, 7:00 p.m “Rearmament, genocide, world war. A socialist perspective against war readiness” (Room 3059, Main Building, Humboldt University, Unter den Linden 6, 10117 Berlin)
• Wednesday, June 25, 2025, 7:00 p.m. “How the Left Party supports the war policies of the Merz government” (Lecture Hall 2097, Main Building, Humboldt University, Unter den Linden 6, 10117 Berlin)
• Tuesday, July 1, 2025, 7:00 p.m. “80 Years after WWII: The return of German militarism and the trivialization of Nazi crimes at Humboldt University” (Lecture Hall 2094, Main Building, Humboldt University, Unter den Linden 6, 10117 Berlin)

The election for the Student Parliament takes place on Thursday, July 3. Vote IYSSE (List 4)! Further information available here.

Although the events were to be held as part of the Student Parliament (StuPa) elections and had been properly authorized by the student representative body (AStA), Humboldt University initially refused to provide rooms for two of the events. A third alternative event against censorship was also rejected. Only after the IYSSE made the ban public and spread the news across campus did the university administration back down.

The aim of the censorship was clear: Amid the massive military buildup by the federal government and constant propaganda about reintroducing conscription and making Germany “war ready,” the university leadership wanted to suppress and silence any student criticism. They fear the growing opposition to war and genocide among students.

The university administration justified the ban by claiming that students have no right to address general political issues at the university. This applies to all student election slates and student groups at Humboldt University. The attack is part of a broader wave of repression against students in recent months, including the reintroduction of disciplinary regulations at Berlin universities.

Members of the IYSSE immediately distributed and discussed a statement against the ban on campus, and protest emails were sent to the university administration. In an email, one student, U. Meyer, emphasized the importance of the university as “an open space for political debate.” She said her political awareness had developed during her studies through a wide range of political events at the university.

Another demanded the reversal of the ban and expressed being “shocked and outraged by the university administration’s actions against critical student events—especially against the IYSSE, which has consistently opposed militarism and war for years.”

On Thursday, the Humboldt University student parliament passed a resolution at the request of the IYSSE clearly rejecting the censorship. It stated:

The student parliament strongly condemns the university administration’s attempt to deny rooms for three anti-war events of the IYSSE at HU. The StuPa calls on the HU administration to also provide rooms for political events organized by student parliament lists and student initiatives and affirms that the political mandate of student groups, particularly StuPa lists, is not limited in the way the administration claims.

The reasoning states:

While the federal government is massively rearming, wants to reintroduce conscription, and supports the genocide in Gaza, Humboldt University leadership tried to forbid its students from critically engaging with these developments.

Therefore, the student parliament declares unequivocally that such restrictions on political life and freedom of speech on campus will not be accepted now or in the future.

In his presentation of the resolution, Tamino Wilck, StuPa representative and spokesperson for the IYSSE at Humboldt University, emphasized the international dimensions of these developments. He explained that while Trump in the US is gradually establishing a military dictatorship to enforce his fascist policies of mass deportations, war and austerity, war policy in Germany could also be enforced only through dictatorial means.

At the same StuPa meeting, another motion was adopted titled “Against War. Against Genocide. Against Racism and Antisemitism,” in which the student parliament condemned “the ongoing repression of pro-Palestinian students at Humboldt University, in Berlin, in Germany, and internationally, especially in the US.”

Unlike other student groups, the IYSSE is running in the StuPa elections with a socialist perspective against war. In our election statement, we warn that the government intends to destroy higher education and the entire social sector and sacrifice young people as cannon fodder in its wars. We declare:

We oppose these attacks and are building an international anti-war movement among workers, students, and youth. We will not allow genocide and world war to be prepared again at German universities, 80 years after the end of World War II.

Appeals to university administrators and governments are a dead end. Instead, we must turn to the international working class – the only social force capable of stopping the drive to war.

The fight against war is a fight against its root cause: capitalism. We face the same alternative that revolutionary Rosa Luxemburg once described: Socialism or barbarism! That’s why we fight for a socialist perspective.

Support our election campaign! Register today to join the IYSSE and attend our events:

Rearmament, Genocide, World War: A Socialist Perspective Against War Readiness

Thursday, June 19, 19:00

The Merz government is enacting the largest military rearmament since Hitler, with war credits exceeding one trillion euros, and implementing the policies of the fascist Alternative for Germany (AfD). Its explicit goal is to make Germany capable of winning a war against nuclear-armed Russia within five years. The seriousness of this madness is evident in the government’s support for the horrific genocide in Gaza. To enforce their geopolitical interests, the ruling elites are once again preparing for war against Russia and returning to genocidal methods. Israeli strikes on Iran threaten to ignite the entire Middle East.

This policy is not simply the result of greed or stupidity of individual politicians but stems from the deep crisis of the capitalist system. The oligarchs can preserve and expand their wealth only through intensified exploitation, police state repression, and wars of plunder. This is particularly clear in the US, where Donald Trump is attempting to establish a military dictatorship. The only way to stop this madness is through an international movement of workers against capitalism. We aim to discuss this perspective at the event with all those interested.

Location: Room 3069 (Main Building, 2nd Floor) Humboldt University, Unter den Linden 6, 10117 Berlin

How the Left Party Supports the War Policy of the Merz Government

Wednesday, June 25, 19:00

A quarter of young voters supported the Left Party in the federal election, to protest against anti-refugee agitation and the war policies of other parties. But, once elected, the Left Party extended its hand to the Merz government, enabled his swift election as chancellor, and even voted for over a trillion euros in war credits in the Bundesrat (upper house of parliament).

The reason lies in the Left Party’s pro-capitalist orientation – a fusion of ex-Stalinist and social democratic bureaucrats who, wherever in power, enforce the harshest social cuts. In contrast to them, what is a viable perspective in the fight against war and austerity? What lessons must be drawn from the Left Party’s politics? We will discuss this at the event.

Location: Lecture Hall 2097 (Main Building, 1st Floor) Humboldt University, Unter den Linden 6, 10117 Berlin

80 Years After WWII: The Return of German Militarism and the Trivialization of Nazi Crimes

Humboldt University, Tuesday, July 1, 19:00

Humboldt University is one of the ideological centres of war preparation. Here, the retired but ever-present professor Herfried Münkler spreads his militarist views, and Eastern European historian Jörg Baberowski downplays the Holocaust and the Nazi war of annihilation. The university administration not only supports these professors but spreads war propaganda and deploys police against critical students. The attempt to censor our events was another step toward transforming the university from the Humboldtian ideal of education into Wilhelmine authoritarianism.

Given the historical experience with fascism and world war, the majority of the population rejects war policy. That is why the government promotes historical revisionism and the ideological preparations for war. The fight against war must, in turn, be guided by a clear understanding of history. This event will focus on the political struggles at Humboldt University in recent years and the ongoing fight against historical falsification and the militarization of our university.

Location: Lecture Hall 2094 (Main Building, 1st Floor) Humboldt University, Unter den Linden 6, 10117 Berlin