By Mareike Sophie Drünkler
Saturday, 10.20 a.m. on Kurfürstendamm – activists of the “last generation” fire the first paint sprayers. Their destination: the shops of the luxury brands Rolex, Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton and Dolce & Gabbana.
They came prepared this time too. The ten climate activists had already loaded their fire extinguishers with orange-colored ammunition in advance. As soon as they arrived, the shop windows, entrances and facades of the shops were already covered in bright paint.
The entrance to the branch was completely daubed Photo: private
“It’s annoying and I don’t understand it at all. That certainly doesn’t help the climate. There are so many better things to do!” says a Prada employee who wishes to remain anonymous. After all, the damage is minor and, apart from the brief closure in the morning, is limited to cleaning the facade.
The “Prada” shop window of the branch on Kurfürstendamm is completely smeared with paint Photo: dpa
The extent and amount of the damage caused is not yet certain, the police told BZ “The people are currently still in police custody,” the site continued on Saturday.
In this case, that meant custody on the spot. Two activists, who in turn were guarded by two police officers, watched over each of the five smeared shops. For hours. Until the mission ended in the late afternoon.
Police officers brought one of the chaotic people to the ground Photo: Reuters
“We’ll stay here as long as we can. I want to put up peaceful, civil resistance. I don’t care if that has legal consequences for me,” says Judith Beadle (42). For the Berliner, the attack on the Rolex business was an outcry – for the climate and “against the rich”.
After she “paused” or just gave up her job as a communication designer a few weeks ago, Beadle now takes to the streets full-time for the “Last Generation”. Next to her on the Rolex front: Willem Schuchard. The 29-year-old traveled all the way from Magdeburg for his protest mission. He doesn’t want to explain himself.
While activists and police officers stood peacefully with their legs in the stomach, more and more Berliners were drawn to the Charlottenburg promenade. Weekend mood, sunshine, spring flowers. Shop windows smeared with bright paint as a backdrop.
And so it didn’t take long for pictures of it to spread on social networks. The first Instagramers posed in front of Prada around 12 p.m.
Stefaniya Beynish (16): “It’s definitely perfect for an Instagram picture, but it has nothing to do with the climate” Photo: Olaf Selchow
“It’s definitely perfect for an Instagram picture, but it has nothing to do with the climate. I think that actions like this only make people angry in the end. And then maybe they don’t want to know anything about environmental protection anymore…” says Stefaniya Beynish (16) from Charlottenburg.