There was cheering and dancing again in downtown Graz on Saturday and Sunday – and the climate gluers were also there.
The annual “Aufsteirern” attracted around 50,000 visitors in dirndls, lederhosen etc. to the streets and alleys of the Styrian capital on the first day. On Sunday, the busiest day of the traditional festival, a good 120,000 guests came to the city center in mild temperatures and sunshine. The main square was already full when the beer was tapped on Sunday morning.
HURRY: Aufsteirern interrupted ????
The time for arguing is over, the time for action must come! Not tomorrow, not next year, but now. Listen to him #Klimarat!https://t.co/o4HXffK7Fq
Short disturbance???? instead of permanent destruction! pic.twitter.com/lUIJE6Zn98
— Last Generation Austria (@chtegenAT) September 17, 2023
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The climate stickers also stopped by the “Aufsteirern” – and even adhered to the dress code. In smart dirndls and lederhosen, the activists of the “Last Generation” interrupted the traditional event. “It would be better to have a short disruption now than to permanently destroy our livelihoods,” said spokeswoman Laila Fuisz (22). “After the floods in Deutschlandsberg, Leibnitz and southeast Styria, it should have been clear for a long time that the climate catastrophe is a reality here and now. The government prefers to look the other way and accept that even more people will lose their homes!”
“Sneak it! You’ll never have children, never!”
At #Steirern We were insulted, but what happens if we run out of water and food?#LastGeneration #a22network pic.twitter.com/P37tXy7qkP
— Last Generation Austria (@chtegenAT) September 17, 2023
Several “Aufsteirern” visitors rushed to the stage to get rid of their frustration about the climate stickers. An older lady scolded: “It’s creeping up. You’ll never have children, never!”
Around 120,000 visitors to the “Aufsteirern”
Since 2002, the “Aufsteirern” in Graz in mid-September has been a fixed date in the calendar of the Styrian folk cultural associations as well as numerous guests, including from other federal states and abroad. Not only traditional craftsmanship and folk music, but also culinary delicacies are offered on numerous stages and squares in the city center. As in the previous year, around 120,000 visitors were counted on Sunday. That brings the two days together to around 170,000 guests, said organizer Markus Lientscher when asked by APA.
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There were already signs of a big crowd on Saturday, when there was a program at nine places. The stages and stands were already well attended on the “warm-up day” until curfew. Sunday started with the beer tapping on the main square: State Governor Christopher Drexler (ÖVP), who had almost cut his teeth last year with what he said was an “unruly keg”, once again went to the keg with a wooden hammer.
Nine strokes for tapping the beer
The mayor of Graz, Elke Kahr (KPÖ) – not otherwise a frequent guest at such events – held the tap for the LH, who this time only needed nine strokes to open the barrel. “The Aufsteirern shows, like no other event, the joy of customs, tradition and the enthusiasm for wearing dirndls and lederhosen. We are all setting an example of how strong and proud our Styria is,” said the state governor, who, among other things, wore lederhosen and wore green socks.
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Mayor Kahr, who attended the opening of the festival for the first time in her role as city leader, did not wear a traditional dress: “I have a dirndl, but it’s 20 years old and I just don’t fit into it anymore. That’s why I’m wearing it today a Styrian blouse.” What she likes about “Aufsteirern” is the originals: “There are so many original traditional costumes to see here. It’s nice that customs are lived like this,” said Kahr.
2023-09-17 19:47:41
#Climate #stickers #disrupt #Aufsteirern #Graz
