Lorenz 'Death: 500 demand justice against police violence in Oldenburg!

Lorenz 'Death: 500 demand justice against police violence in Oldenburg!

In Oldenburg, around 500 people gathered today to demonstrate to investigate a tragic incident that throws its shadows over the city. More than two months ago, 21-year-old Lorenz A. was killed by several shots by a police officer. The incident occurred during the night of Easter Sunday, after a discussion in which Lorenz threatened with a knife and sprayed irritating gas towards security employees. This confrontation ended fatally when the policeman fired the young man five times and hit him on the hip, on the upper body and on the head, as the autopsy showed. The young man died at the scene. The whole Situation has mobilized the "Justice for Lorenz" initiative, which now calls for complete information and a fair handling of this incident.

The demonstration organized by the initiative was peaceful, which confirmed the police. The participants carried posters with slogans like "Lorenz, that was murder!" And "Resistance everywhere - Lorenz was not an isolated case". In doing so, they show their determination to act against supposedly racist police violence. The spokesman for the initiative emphasize that the case of Lorenz is not an isolated case, but part of a major problem of racist violence in Germany, which is often ignored or regarded as isolated incidents, Heimatkunde Böll.

demands for reforms

The Green Youth Lower Saxony joins the demands for reforms and urges the use of bodycams and the establishment of independent investigative institutions. But not all positions are agreed. The German Police Union considers a labeling obligation to be superfluous, while the police union (GDP) supports the Bodycam obligation, but also demands more legal options for their use in private apartments. The Ministry of the Interior Verses political and legal hurdles for such measures and emphasizes that an obligation to label is provided in the coalition agreement, but has not yet been implemented.

In the debate about racist police violence and the structures in the police, a refusal is often observed to recognize systemic problems as such. The use of violence is often dismissed as an individual case, while reports on racial profiling and discriminatory behavior are often not taken seriously. This dislocation culture, paired with a lack of statistics on cases of racism, contributes to the invisibility of the problem, according to Heimatkunde Böll.

According to the organizers of the demonstration, the exact background of the fatal police operation are still unclear. While the investigation against the accused police officer is running for manslaughter, the question of how often police actions like this remain without consequences remains in the room. A criminologist commented on the incident and described the use of the firearm as illegal. This makes it clear that the Lorenz A. case is not only an individual tragedy, but also triggers a great political and social discourse on how such incidents should be dealt with in the future.

In addition to the demonstration in Oldenburg, this day also took place in cities such as Hamburg, Berlin, Kiel and other places. This nationwide day of action against racist police force shows: The question of justice for Lorenz and the large number of people who suffer from similar circumstances moves many and remains a central concern in the public discussion.