Student Opposition Groups

• The 1960s saw the development of widespread student protests in the FRG and elsewhere. Many young people were bored with the apparent comfort and stability in the FRG when TV screens and the media were filled with suffering and injustices. Although, not all students joined the protest movements, and not all protesters where students.
• A number of key issues caused students to protest, such as:

  • Increasing influence of the USA and the perceived FRG governmental support for the Vietnam war.
  • Increasing military spending and the participation in NATO - fear this would lead to the deployment of nuclear weapons within the FRG.
  • Overcrowding and the lack of student representation in institutions of higher education.
  • The government's failure to completely remove former Nazis from positions of responsibility.
  • The introduction of more conservative policies by the SPD after the 1959 Bad Godesberg Conference.
• Other broader issues causing student opposition included:

  • Growing materialism
  • Growing power of the establishment and media - radicals argued were unaccountable to the people and therefore incompatible with a democratic society
  • Growing authoritarianism of federal governments
• As early as spring 1964, journalist Georg Picht wrote an influential series of articles which argued education was in a state of crisis, with a shortage of teachers and resources in both schools and universities where overcrowding was also a significant factor. He argued that economic growth was not possible because the education system was too poor to produce the skilled workforce necessary for future developments. The state governments responded with the foundation of 5 new universities in 1964, but this was not the answer.
• Issues in the university sector included:

  • Universities were overcrowded, with the main teaching method being lectures which was attended by huge numbers.
  • Universities were underfunded.
  • Students lacked representation on governing bodies.
• Students weren't the only group concerned about the future of university education. From 1968, the West German Chamber of Commerce feared that universities were creating too many graduates compared to the number of skilled jobs available.
• Student protest was largely initiated in the Free University in West Berlin, which opened in 1948. The university was unique as students had representation in its governance, leading to it attracting radical students. West Berlin was also the only part of the FRG where military conscription didn't operate.
• In May 1965, students of the Free University went on strike when the university authorities banned radical journalist Erich Kuby from speaking against the Vietnam War. Although, the underlying reasons for student discontent were overcrowding and staff shortages.

  In February 1966, an anti-war protest of 2500 students led to confrontation with riot police.

  In 1968, 12000 students also protested against the US involvement in Vietnam.
• In June 1966, students of the Free University organised demonstrations calling for more say in university affairs and an end to the banning of radical speakers. Protest spread to other universities in 1965 after the greater involvement of the Socialist German Student's Union (SDS), which was more radical than the long established Union of German Students (VDS).

  The government responded by announcing an increase in funding for research. This amounted to DM260000 in June 1966, twice the 1955 figure. Although, this wasn't enough to stop the student protesters.
• What began as a protest about university standards quickly evolved into a protest about the nature of German society.

  In January 1967, Kommune 1 was established in West Berlin. Members of the commune lived together in communal ownership and free love.

  Official harassment of communes led to further protest. Often protests took the form of street theatre rather than something more violent. In police raids in April 1967 discovered bombs filled with blancmange rather than explosives.
• APO (Opposition Outside of Parliament):

  APO was a group of left wing students and trade unions which felt radical protest was their only option to force change. Initially, they focused on strikes, marches and demonstrations. However, the impact of their protests were limited. After members graduated, they often conformed and accepted conventional lives. Although, some did become more radical and joined more violent groups.
• Socialist Students' Union (SDS):

  The SDS was founded in 1946 as the student wing of the SPD. However, after the SPD's policies became more conservative in 1959, the SDS became more radical. They also became more wide ranging in their campaigns, railing against things like the Vietnam War, nuclear weapons in the FRG and former Nazis holding positions of power. From 1966, the SDS became a vocal opposition group to the Grand Coalition. They adopted tactics such as student sit-ins at universities and mass demonstrations. By the late 1960s, it had control of the national student body, the VDS.
• On 2nd June 1967, protests took place against the visit to Berlin of the Shah of Iran, who was seen as a brutal dictator. A student demonstrator was shot and killed by a police officer who claimed self-defence. The killing caused widespread and sometimes violent mass protests across the FRG, often organised and led by university students. They targeted the media empire of Axel Springer, which supported the officer and attacked the New Left.
• When Rudi Dutschke was shot by a neo-Nazi gunman in April 1968, there was a wave of student protests across the FRG. Many blamed Springer newspapers such as Das Bild for encouraging the attempt. The shooting led to 5 days of violent protest throughout the FRG and radical protesters attacked Springer buildings and personnel.
• Despite mass protests and an SDS membership of 80000 in 1968, the student protest movement ended in the following years as the members grew older and took their place in mainstream society. While it attracted authoritarian responses from the government, its impact was limited.
• Most Germans didn't support student radicals, nor did they have much sympathy for them. In June 1968, the magazine Der Spiegel found that 92% of Berliners surveyed opposed student violence. Moreover, in response to a Berlin Free University 'teach-in' on Vietnam in February 1968, construction workers marched in force with the message 'Berlin Supports America'.
• Most younger Berliners also appeared not to support radical change. Der Spiegel found 78% of working class Berliners under the age of 30 were opposed to student radicals.
• As student protest faded, some of those supporting radical change turned to violence and terrorism.