MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Over 2,000 refugees paraded from the defunct Tempelhof airport in Berlin’s southern suburb Shoeneberg to the bohemian Kreuzberg district, according to a police spokeswoman cited by Berlin-based public broadcaster RBB.
The migrant festival comes just days after Berlin wrapped up its annual Carnival of Cultures, which celebrates the capital’s cultural diversity, and is timed to the UN Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on Monday.
German theaters, workers’ unions, religious associations and civic initiatives said they stood in support of refugees under the motto "My Right is Your Right."
Organizers of the event said the Carnival of Refugees aimed to raise awareness among Berliners of challenges faced by migrants living in Berlin shelters and let refugees express themselves through native song and dance.
Last year, over a million of migrants crossed into Germany after fleeing conflicts in Africa and the Middle East, causing Germans to split over whether they should be allowed to stay.
