Monday demonstrations in East Germany
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The Monday demonstrations in East Germany in 1989 and 1990 (German: Montagsdemonstrationen) were a series of peaceful political protests against the government of the German Democratic Republic of East Germany.
The demonstrations began in Leipzig after prayers for peace in the Nikolai Church with parson Christian Führer, and filled the nearby downtown Karl Marx Platz. Safe in the knowledge that the Lutheran Church supported their stance, many dissatisfied East German citizens gathered in the court of the church, and non-violent demonstrations began in order to demand rights such as the freedom to travel to foreign countries and to elect a democratic government.
Informed by television and friends about the events, people in other East German cities begun repeating the Leipzig demonstration, meeting at city squares on Monday evenings. By October 1989, more than 250,000 people had joined the anti-government demonstrations.
The most famous chant became Wir sind das Volk! - "We are the people". Although some demonstrators were arrested, the threat of large-scale intervention by security forces never materialised. The demonstrations eventually ended in March 1990, around the time of the multi-party elections that led to German reunification.
