Policemen and water canons block the road to the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, 7 July 2017. Boris Roessler/Press Association. All rights reserved. Hamburg was a brave choice. Recent G20 summits have been hosted on remote islands or in castles deep in the countryside, out of the way of activists and media.
Hamburg is a well-connected city with a rich history of protest. Other cities that hosted G20 and G8 summits saw huge protests and state repression and violence. Genoa in 2001, Seattle in 2008, London in 2009 or Toronto in 2010 were the scenes of widespread arrests and injuries. A protestor died in Genoa. Policing methods introduced in London were later found to be unlawful. The mass arrests of demonstrators, bystanders and journalists in Toronto were strongly criticised by human rights organisations.
A new generation
The majority of the tens of thousands of people who headed to Hamburg wanted to demand international solidarity and to condemn wars and border-walls. They had a sobering stay.
