Neubrandenburg in the turmoil: Mayor steps back after rainbow flag dispute

Neubrandenburg in the turmoil: Mayor steps back after rainbow flag dispute

In a surprising turn, the city council of Neubrandenburg, the third largest city of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, decided to hang out the rainbow flag at the local train station. This decision followed a number of incidents in which strangers had removed the flags or even replaced by a swastika flag. Such actions have triggered concern and fueled the debate about the visibility of LGBT symbols in the region.

The application to abolish the rainbow flag was initiated by councilor Tim Großmüller of the voter community "Stable Citizens for Neubrandenburg". The AfD supported this application, while the SPD, the Greens and the left were right. An abstention came from the Alliance Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW), which underlines the political tensions within the city council.

resignation of the mayor

In the result of this decision, Silvio Witt, the non -party mayor of Neubrandenburg, announced his resignation from May 2025. Witt, who is homosexual himself and lives in a registered partnership, has repeatedly known himself for the LGBT movement and has shown the rainbow flag on social media. His term would usually be until 2029, but the public pressure and the attacks he suffered seem to have moved him to take this step.

At an event in Berlin, Witt said that the pressure was exercised not only on him, but on his entire environment, including his “husband”, his family and friends. The SPD parliamentary group, Michael Stieber, mentioned that the repeated degrading attacks on Witt clearly led him to put the protection of his family in the first place.

Witt himself reported in an interview that he was insulted by members of other parties in the city council. Statements such as "girls", "smaller" and "males" were part of the reducing attacks. Social tensions in the city have increased, and the situation highlights the challenges, the Politicals experience in terms of their sexual orientation and their political attitude.

In response to the decision of the city council, there is already a local initiative that calls for the reversal of the rainbow flag. An associated petition collected over 5,600 signatures within just a few days. The SPD, the Greens and the left, which have spoken out against the ban on the rainbow flag, plan to bring in a counter -decision and thus to achieve the return of the icon of diversity.

With approximately 64,000 inhabitants, Neubrandenburg is in an important social discourse on tolerance and acceptance. The current developments show that the topics of diversity and identity in politics are still of considerable weight.

The continuing arguments about the rainbow flag in Neubrandenburg not only reflect local tensions, but are also part of a larger social discourse on LGBT rights and their representation in public. How the situation develops remains to be seen, as www.kath.net reported .