Election Campaign Poster for Alliance 90/The Greens: "Kohlrouladen" (1990)

During the campaign for the first all-German Bundestag elections on December 2, 1990, Alliance 90 (which consisted of the New Forum, Democracy Now, and the Initiative for Freedom and Human Rights) formed a coalition with the Greens (East). The coalition set itself apart with its humorous and critical posters and slogans. Here is one example. This poster shows an East German citizen being rolled into a “Kohlroulade” by an over-sized Helmut Kohl [a Kohlroulade is a cabbage leaf stuffed with meat, a pun on the surname Kohl, which means “cabbage”]. The slogan “Wrap – Cook Well – Unravel. Instead of Unraveling: Develop! Employment for All!” alludes to the “unraveling” of East German enterprises and the scrapping of numerous jobs. In place of this, Alliance 90/The Greens demanded a policy of sustainable structural development. In the new federal states, Alliance 90/The Greens garnered 6% of the vote and were able to send eight representatives to the Bundestag. The West German Greens, on the other hand, were unable to clear the 5% hurdle.

print version     return to image list

previous image      first image in next chapter

© Bundesarchiv