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 SPD less popular than the CDU in the early years of the FRG?

Answer 4

the SDP had the more radical agenda

voters wanted a more moderate approach

Question 5

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

Answer 5

they argued against many policies under Adenauer:
- went against the ‘Year Zero’ idea
- went against westernisation

Question 6

what element of the Basic Law allowed the government to clamp down on certain political groups?

Answer 6

it said that political parties could exist as long as they did not threaten constitution or democracy

Question 7

what was the Socialist Reich Party?

Answer 7

a Nazi spin off party

Question 8

when was the Socialist Reich Party banned and how?

Answer 8

in 1952

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

Question 9

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

Answer 9

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

Question 10

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

Answer 10

this was a trend across the world in the 60s which included:

objection to the ‘year zero’ principle

protests against the FRG military, NATO and the use of nuclear weapons

against the USA for its actions in Vietnam

Question 11

objection to the ‘year zero’ principle

Answer 11

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 12

protests against the FRG military, NATO and the use of nuclear weapons

Answer 12

many Germans did not want the FRG getting involved with NATO

they saw the possibility of the FRG having its own nuclear arsenal or even have foreign nuclear weapons being stored in the FRG

there were many US and British air force bases in the FRG which were used

Question 13

against the USA for its actions in Vietnam

Answer 13

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

in Vietnam the use of Napalm and guerrilla warfare meant civilians communities were destroyed

Question 14

what was the APO?

Answer 14

Extra-parliamentary opposition

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

Question 15

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

Answer 15

the SPD had become less radical in order to win more seats in the Bundestag

BUT
this meant that many left-wing supporters were left unrepresented

Question 16

who were the main types of people in the APO?

Answer 16

• students
• trade unionists
• communists

Question 17

what did students in the FRG mainly protest about?

Answer 17

underfunding
teacher shortages
lack of student representation

Question 18

what was the APO’s main form of protest?

Answer 18

university student protests

Question 19

why can the APO be seen to be contradictory?

Answer 19

the concepts of ‘sit ins’ were first used in American universities as a form of protest

yet the APO was incredibly anti-American and were against American imperialism

Question 20

what was the SDS?

Answer 20

German Socialist Student Union

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

Question 21

what did the SDS protest about?

Answer 21

• 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 22

who led the SDS after 1965?

Answer 22

Rudi Dutschke

Question 23

what did the SDS protest against in May 1968?

Answer 23

the Emergency Law and how it violated the Basic Law

Question 24

what happened to Rudi Dutschke?

Answer 24

he was shot by a neo-Nazi in 1968 but survived

later drowned after a seizure

Question 25

were the SDS violent?

Answer 25

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

Question 26

how many protested against the use of the Emergency Law in May 1968?

Answer 26

80,000

Question 27

how did dissent change in the 1970s?

Answer 27

it became WAY more violent and terrorism ran rife

the introduction of the Emergency Law meant that student protest was no longer viable

Question 28

was the Emergency Law successful?

Answer 28

Yes
gave the government the power arrest and use surveillance to monitor opposition which meant there were less protests

NO
increased the level of violence as marginalised groups resorted to terrorism

Question 29

how was the Emergency Law different to the Enabling Act?

Answer 29

the Bundestag had to remain in session during an emergency

the constitutional court continued to operate during an emergency

only Bundestag could decide when emergency ended (NOT THE GOVERNMENT)

Question 30

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

Answer 30

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

Question 31

what would terrorist groups often do?

Answer 31

they were fluid:
groups would form
then merge
change name and split

more difficult to deal with

Question 32

what was the Bader Meinhof gang?

Answer 32

also know as the Red Army Faction

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

Question 33

what effect did the RAF have?

Answer 33

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 34

how many people did the RAF murder in the 1970s?

Answer 34

28

Question 35

what book did the RAF publish?

Answer 35

The Concept of the Urban Guerilla
in 1971

Question 36

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

Answer 36

Germans realised that protesting was not achieving anything

the FRG government were also more active in policing

Question 37

what did the RAF do?

Answer 37

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

Question 38

what was a peaceful aspect of political opposition which developed in the 1980s?

Answer 38

the establishment of the Green Party

Question 39

what did the Green Party do?

Answer 39

provided a democratic and peaceful outlet for those who opposed the SPD and CDU

Question 40

what impact did the Greens have on terrorism in the FRG?

Answer 40

support for radical violent opposition fell as more Germans sought peaceful and democratic opposition