Demonstrators unravelled a huge rainbow flag outside the German parliament on Friday to protest against a decision to not raise the flag on the landmark building during Berlin's annual Pride march.

Julia Klöckner, a conservative who became the German parliament’s speaker in March, angered many in the LGBTQ+ community by announcing that the flag would be raised over the Reichstag on May 17, the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, but during the Pride march in late July.

Her center-left predecessor, Bärbel Bas, became the first speaker to raise the rainbow flag at the Reichstag in July 2022.

Klöckner argued that the flag was already displayed by individuals during Pride, and that the right to sexual self-determination was represented by the German national flag, which symbolises the constitution.

Meanwhile, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who leads Klöckner’s Christian Democratic Union party, backed the speaker, saying in an appearance on ARD television that “the Bundestag isn’t a circus tent.”

Critics argued the move was evidence the government is bowing to pressure from the right, as the new ruling coalition eyes a threat on its right flank from the far-right AfD party, which has seen a surge in popularity in recent years.

Cabaret artist Miss Cathrinsche, who attended the protest in an elaborate rainbow outfit said that "as long as you do not stop hating us and constantly discriminating against us, threatening us, insulting us, and threatening us with violence, we will continue and we will never be silent again."

AP Video shot by Fanny Brodersen