Political dissent

Question 1

what allowed opposition to have a voice in the FRG?

Answer 1

the Basic Law made it clear that freedom of speech was important

Question 2

why was there less political dissent in the early years of the FRG?

Answer 2

the FRG had to focus in collectively rebuilding before seeking out large changes to how the country was run

Question 3

what were the bigger issues for the FRG in the 1950s?

Answer 3

• rebuilding government and forming coalitions
• building a sense of identity
• rebuilding the economy and the country
• establishing the FRG as a viable member of the European community

Question 4

why was the SDP less popular than the CDU in the early years of the FRG?

Answer 4

the SDP had the most radical agenda out of the 2 and voters wanted a more moderate approach

Question 5

what did the SDP criticise about the CDU’s governance in the 1950s?

Answer 5

• argued against many policies of Adenauer’s
• went against the ‘Year Zero’ idea
• went against westernisation

Question 6

what was the Socialist Reich Party?

Answer 6

a Nazi spin off party

Question 7

when was the Socialist Reich Party banned and how?

Answer 7

in 1952

the Basic Law was used to ban the party as it was seen as a threat to the constitution and democracy

Question 8

what happened after the KPD failed to get into the Bundestag?

Answer 8

6,000 communists took to the street to protest in Munich 1953 which became violent

Question 9

why was there a rise in youth protest in the 1960s?

Answer 9

this was a trend across the world in the 60s

in the FRG, young Germans began questioning what their parents did during the Nazi regime as well as protesting against the re-involvement of Nazis in the Civil Service and the Army

Question 10

which war was a massive reason for youth protest in the 1960s?

Answer 10

the Vietnam War

many young Germans began to hate the USA and saw it as a greedy capitalist country

Question 11

what was the APO?

Answer 11

Extra-parliamentary opposition

a left-wing party which represented those on the left who felt unrepresented by the SPD

Question 12

why was the SPD less popular amongst the left-wing?

Answer 12

they became less radical in their socialist thinking which helped them win elections but left many supporters questioning the direction of the party

believed in a social revolution

Question 13

who were the main types of people in the APO?

Answer 13

• students
• trade unionists
• communists

Question 14

what was the APO’s main form of protest?

Answer 14

university student protests

Question 15

what was the SDS?

Answer 15

German Socialist Student Union

broke away from the SPD in 1961 due to feelings that the party no longer represented left wing values

Question 16

what did the SDS protest about?

Answer 16

• the government
• for various human rights issues
• moral issues
• involvement with NATO
• ex-Nazis being given power

they protested about atomic armament and the Vietnam war

Question 17

who led the SDS after 1965?

Answer 17

Rudi Dutschke

Question 18

what did the SDS protest against in 1966?

Answer 18

the Emergency Law and how it violated the Basic Law

Question 19

what happened to Rudi Dutschke?

Answer 19

he was shot by a right-wing fanatic in 1968

Question 20

where the SDS violent?

Answer 20

there was a large contingent who resorted to terrorism in the late 60s and the 70s

Question 21

how did dissent change in the 1970s?

Answer 21

it became WAY more violent and terrorism ran rife

Question 22

was the Emergency Law successful?

Answer 22

Yes and no

it did reduce the number of protests BUT it led to many groups to resort to terrorism instead

Question 23

what policies did the government use to deal with terrorists in the 1970s?

Answer 23

• use of wanted posters
• appealing to the public to turn them in

Question 24

what was the Bader Meinhof gang?

Answer 24

also know as the Red Army Faction

they were a far-left extremist terrorist organisation in the FRG

Question 25

what effect did the RAF have?

Answer 25

when their leaders were arrested in 1972, there was a spike in terrorist activity

when one leader died in prison, bombings and assassinations followed of lawyers and judges

they advocated violent actions and even when to Palestine to train with the PLO

Question 26

what book did the RAF publish?

Answer 26

The Concept of the Urban Guerilla

Question 27

why did terrorist activity slow down at the start of the 1980s?

Answer 27

Germans realised that protesting was not achieving anything
the FRG government were also more active in policing

Question 28

what did the RAF do?

Answer 28

• rob banks
• they bombed the HQ of the US Army in 1972