Twenty years after the school massacre at the Gutenberg-Gymnasium in Erfurt, the school wants to focus on the biographies of the victims this year on the day of remembrance.
"This year, the day is designed a little differently than in previous years," says headmistress Christiane Alt. With parts of her biography, the victims are to be portrayed in more detail in the speeches.
"We have the group of current students, for them it's like something out of the history book and we have to try to breathe life into this topic and especially get the victims out of their anonymity by talking about them."
On April 26, 2002, a former student at Gutenberg High School killed 16 people.
The 19-year-old shot twelve teachers, one student, one student, one secretary, one police officer and ultimately himself. It was the first school massacre of this magnitude at a German school.
Previously, gun massacres were a phenomenon known in Germany from the United States, for example from Columbine High School in Littleton (1999).
Every year on the anniversary of the crime, students and teachers from today and then, relatives of the victims and those who knew them, gather on the steps in front of the school for a silent commemoration.
Two years ago, the commemoration day did not take place at all due to the corona, last year under strict conditions.
This year, relatives, alumni, sponsors and friends should be able to meet again at the school after the commemoration event.