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"Schützenfest"
'Schützenfeste' - shooting competitions
with a fair - are quintessentially German: A traditional
summer ritual in small towns and villages in which
the conservative values of order and community
spirit are celebrated.
There are 15,000 German rifle clubs
with a total membership of up to 1.6 million people.
Although the fascination with weapons and shooting
is still strong, recent gun incidents involving
rifle club members (including a school shooting
in Erfurt in May 2002) has made some members feel
like a persecuted minority.
This, coupled with changing leisure activities
especially of young people as well as the dissolution
process experienced by many rural communities,
means that the rifle clubs' future is under threat.
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