After the first nationwide school strike against conscription on December 5, 2025, in Germany, yesterday over 50,000 students took to the streets again in more than 130 cities to strike against compulsory military service and for their future.
Since January 1, the new Military Service Act has come into force. Young men born after 2008 have been receiving mandatory questionnaires to assess their fitness for military service. Mandatory physical examinations are set to follow starting next summer. All of this allegedly for the “defense of democracy.” The School Strike Alliance resolutely counters this narrative:
“This state does not care about our freedom or our opinions. (…) Conscription is part of Germany’s struggle for global power, markets, resources, and trade routes. (…) We have nothing to gain from rearmament and war.”
The supposed “voluntary” nature of military service currently only applies to those with alternative paths open to them. For instance, the citizens’ benefit (“Bürgergeld”) was recently abolished and replaced by the even more precarious and undignified “Grundsicherung” (basic security). In this moment, when the war is impacting working and living conditions of millions, through public spending, layoffs and lower salaries, for many, military service becomes the only solution. While the government cuts down more and more on welfare, the Bundeswehr recruits young people lacking financial means with promises of high wages, free driver’s license and financial benefits. These financial incentives mask what truly awaits young people in the military: drill, dehumanization, and training to kill!
Since the last strike on December, many students faced massive repression. School administrations imposed sanctions to prevent students and teachers from participating. Yesterday, several schools even locked their doors from the inside to keep students from joining the strikes. Protesters were sanctioned by police and some were even subjected to formal identification processing.
However, the strikes also received massive solidarity. Parents and grandparents have formed solidarity-initiatives, and a broad spectrum of left-wing and civil society initiatives, as well as trade unions stood shoulder to shoulder with students in the squares and streets of all those cities today. We also stand in solidarity with the students on strike! We believe that the social strike against the war can break the fear and build up the opposition against this present made of violence, brutality and exploitation!
The next strike date is already set: On May 8, students will take to the streets for the third time – against conscription, war, and militarization! So stay tuned and join the movement!
