2 June Movement

2 June Movement
Name	2 June Movement
Native name	Bewegung 2. Juni
Active	1970–1980
Country	West Germany
Ideology	Militant anarchism, anti-imperialism, urban guerrilla
Area	West Berlin, West Germany
Leaders	Notable members (see text)
Opponents	West Berlin Police, Federal Republic of Germany, Christian Democratic Union of Germany, Social Democratic Party of Germany

2 June Movement The 2 June Movement was a West Berlin-based militant organization active during the 1970s, linked to urban guerrilla actions, kidnappings, and confrontations with law enforcement and political figures in the Federal Republic of Germany. It emerged amid student radicalization associated with protests following the death of Benno Ohnesorg, the trial of Rudi Dutschke, and the rise of groups like the Red Army Faction and the Baader-Meinhof Group. The group’s name referenced the date of the shooting of Benno Ohnesorg during a demonstration; its members later engaged with events including the hostage crisis involving Peter Lorenz and high-profile clashes with West Berlin Police and German courts.

History

The Movement formed in the climate of late 1960s and early 1970s West German radicalism, linked to the broader European cycle of protest that included the May 1968 events in France, demonstrations at Free University of Berlin, and actions by militants such as Ulrike Meinhof and Andreas Baader. Key incidents tied to its origins include the shooting of Benno Ohnesorg on 2 June 1967 and the assassinations of figures like Uwe Barschel—though Barschel’s death occurred later and influenced subsequent political debates. The organization operated in parallel with groups like the Red Army Faction and cooperated or clashed with collectives such as Revolutionary Cells (RZ) and factions of the German student movement. Actions escalated during the 1970s Ruhr conflicts, intersecting with international episodes including the Entebbe raid aftermath, links to Palestinian militant networks such as Fatah, and solidarity with prisoners like Andreas Baader and Gudrun Ensslin.

Ideology and Goals

The Movement combined militant anarchism, anti-imperialist rhetoric, and revolutionary socialism influenced by thinkers and events tied to the New Left, Italian Autonomia, and anti-colonial struggles including the Vietnam War. Its goals included the abolition of institutions seen as oppressive in West Berlin and opposition to parties like the Christian Democratic Union of Germany and the Social Democratic Party of Germany. The group drew inspiration from activists such as Rudi Dutschke, journalists like Ulrike Meinhof, and militant examples including the Weather Underground and the Irish Republican Army. Tactics were justified by reference to incidents like the killing of Benno Ohnesorg and trials at the Landgericht Berlin and were articulated in communiqués reminiscent of manifestos from the Provisional Irish Republican Army and the Red Brigades.

Major Attacks and Operations

Notable operations attributed to associates include the kidnapping of Peter Lorenz in 1975, which intersected with demands similar to those of the Red Army Faction and prompted negotiations involving the Federal Republic of Germany and the West Berlin Senate. Other actions involved bombings and bank robberies in locales such as Kreuzberg and confrontations at sites including the Berlin Wall and checkpoints near Checkpoint Charlie. The Movement’s activities drew responses from agencies like the Bundeskriminalamt and units of the West Berlin Police, and featured violent episodes comparable in public impact to the German Autumn and operations by the Bewegung 2. Juni contemporaries. Internationally resonant incidents paralleled the Munich massacre in their effect on security policy, and trials referenced precedents from courts hearing cases related to the Red Army Faction and the Schleyer kidnapping.

Organization and Membership

The group was small, cell-based, and decentralized, with membership overlapping that of other West German militant groups and leftist collectives such as the Movement of 1968, communal networks in Kommune 1, and squatter movements in Friedrichshain. Prominent individuals associated through arrests or trials included activists later compared to figures like Ingrid Schubert and Brigitte Mohnhaupt of the Red Army Faction, while some members emigrated or sought refuge with organizations such as Palestine Liberation Organization factions. The internal structure resembled clandestine networks used by the Red Brigades and the Weather Underground, employing safe houses in neighborhoods like Neukölln and support from sympathetic groups in cities such as Hamburg, Frankfurt am Main, and Munich.

Government Response and Legal Proceedings

Responses involved police operations by units of the West Berlin Police, investigations by the Bundeskriminalamt, and prosecutions at institutions including the Landgericht Berlin and federal courts in the Federal Republic of Germany. Legal actions included trials, lengthy pretrial detentions, and debates in the Bundestag about emergency laws and the balance between civil liberties and security—echoing legislative discussions after events like the German Autumn. Some detainees received sentences similar to those in cases against Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof, while prisoner exchange negotiations invoked precedents from international incidents such as the Entebbe hostage crisis and policies toward political prisoners exemplified by debates involving the Göttingen Seven in German political memory.

Legacy and Cultural Impact

The Movement’s legacy is reflected in literature, film, and scholarship addressing German radicalism, appearing in works about the German student movement and studies comparing urban guerrilla tactics to those of the Red Army Faction, Weather Underground, and Red Brigades. Cultural treatments include portrayals in documentaries about the German Autumn, novels set in West Berlin, and analyses in journals connected to the New Left and historical institutes like the Friedrich Ebert Foundation and the Stiftung Deutsches Historisches Museum. Debates about state surveillance tied to agencies like the Verfassungsschutz and reforms to policing in cities such as Berlin and Hamburg trace part of their impetus to confrontations with groups of this era. Memorials related to victims including Benno Ohnesorg and exhibitions at institutions like the Topography of Terror address the period’s contested memory.

Category:Left-wing militant groups