Josephine Ortleb, Vice President of the German Bundestag, opens the democracy game.Image: EPA
A young person was excluded because of racist signs, the AfD felt discriminated against and the police also had to intervene – that was the German Youth Parliament 2026.
June 11, 2026, 2:58 p.mJune 11, 2026, 2:58 p.m
From Sunday to Tuesday, 270 Germans between the ages of 17 and 20 played in the Bundestag in Berlin. The aim of the “Youth and Parliament” simulation game is to introduce young adults to democratic processes, i.e. to practice democracy and train consensus-building. This year it seems to have worked less well Mirror reported.
Anyone who is young, interested in politics and lives in Germany can be nominated by members of the Bundestag for the Youth Parliament. The young people play a politician. The participants are divided into three fictitious factions by lottery, elect chairmen and discuss fictitious draft laws.
In “Youth and Parliament,” young people take on the role of members of the Bundestag.Image: EPA
Representatives from all political parties in the Bundestag are thrown together and have to find solutions together. At the beginning they do not know the political views of the other participants. However, for some it should quickly become obvious.
Participant makes racist hand sign
It begins on Sunday with a photo in a Bundestag café. You can see it: A young person shows the “White Power” hand sign. The picture is shared on social media by a Berlin AfD politician. On Tuesday, the participants in the democracy game decided to exclude the young person concerned.
The “White Power” sign
The hand signal is similar to the diver’s hand signal for OK. The middle and ring fingers are stretched into the air with the little finger, forming the W for “White”. The thumb and index finger form the P for “Power”.
“White power” is a racist code and stands for the supposed superiority of white people. The symbol is often used in right-wing extremist circles to identify a shared ideology.
The police operation will take place on the night of Monday to Tuesday. There is a physical altercation in the hotel between two young people – who, according to participants, were nominees of the AfD faction. The AfD was initially unable to confirm the incident, writes “Spiegel”. However, she makes allegations.
AfD sees itself as a victim
Beatrix von Storch, deputy parliamentary group leader of the AfD, comments in one video together with two AfD nominees. AfD young people were insulted and threatened. “With democratic majorities, the others are silenced,” says von Storch in the video. AfD leader Alice Weidel now wants to get to the bottom of this “through legal and parliamentary means,” writes “Spiegel”.
Beatrix von Storch, deputy chairwoman of the AfD parliamentary group, believes the AfD is being treated unfairly.Image: DPA
Other participants disagree
Statements from participants from other parties contradict these descriptions. “We tried to talk to you, you didn’t want to talk to us,” said Julian Güttler, nominee of the Union faction, to “Spiegel”. According to Lasko Schleunung, a participant in the Left Party, the AfD nominees themselves have left the factions assigned to them. AfD delegates also attracted attention through racist statements such as “Blood Germans”.
It was clear early on who belonged to the AfD. “Everyone, regardless of party, had a nice chat at the reception in the Paul-Löbe-Haus – except for a small group,” Schleunung tells “Spiegel”. When attempts were made to have a conversation, the tone quickly became rough. In addition to “Blood Germans,” the N-word was also mentioned.
Nevertheless, Schleunung admits that the situation has escalated over the days. A few young people also insulted people from the AfD as “Nazis”. However, the majority of participants always treated the group fairly, tried to involve them in processes and elected individuals to positions of responsibility.
The future of the democracy game is uncertain. “We are here to actively practice democracy and are now afraid that “Youth and Parliament” will no longer be able to take place in the future,” fears Lasko Schleunung. (Nile)