10 Years of the Society for Civil Liberties: This Campaign Shows How Our Freedom Is Disappearing
Under the slogan “Making people uncomfortable since 2015,” the Berlin-based agency ressourcenmangel has developed a campaign for the Society for Civil Liberties (GFF) that highlights how important it is, now more than ever, to stand up for freedom. The campaign launches with the GFF’s 10th anniversary celebration on September 19 at Fotografiska, in the former Kunsthaus Tacheles in Berlin.
Trump is hollowing out democracy, Hungary is cozying up to Putin, and Germany is closing its borders while government surveillance continues to expand. Civil liberties have rarely been under this much pressure — not only worldwide, but also here in Germany. Since 2015, the Society for Civil Liberties has been defending our fundamental rights in court. One current case, for example, sees the organization joining forces with Reporters Without Borders to challenge the police analysis of data from a journalist’s mobile phone after it was confiscated. Another of its many lawsuits concerns the use of Palantir surveillance software in Bavaria against citizens who have never committed a crime. The NGO is currently taking this data-mining case all the way to Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court.
Ressourcenmangel and GFF are taking a stand for democracy
The campaign makes both the attack on civil liberties and the GFF’s fight against it visible. Posters and digital out-of-home placements feature words such as “freedom,” “fundamental rights,” and “human dignity” appearing faded, fragile, and under threat. Sub-lines such as “When freedom fades, we fight for you” build on the original visual concept and communicate that freedom must be defended — by the Society for Civil Liberties and by all of us.
The idea is also carried forward on social media through moving-image content. Additional visuals show that the GFF continues to fight for freedom even when everyone else has given up.
“Standing up for freedom and democracy is essential. With a simple but powerful idea, we captured that urgency perfectly,” says Benjamin Minack, CEO and founder of ressourcenmangel.
“Making people uncomfortable since 2015 — that’s exactly who we are. We don’t just complain; we take legal action to defend our freedom, if necessary all the way to Karlsruhe,” adds Malte Spitz, Secretary General and co-founder of the Society for Civil Liberties.
The campaign visuals can be seen across OOH and DOOH placements in Berlin as well as on social media. The campaign accompanies the organization’s 10th anniversary celebrations.
