Friedrich Oerter

German lithographic worker and anarchist. Along with his younger brother Sepp, he was active in the youth wing of the Social-Democratic Party but were expelled, joining the anarchist movement and smuggling anarchist literature into the country. Both brothers were arrested for delivering “seditious speeches” at a meeting of the unemployed in Mainz. On Oct 25th 1893 Sepp was sentenced to 8 years in prison and Fritz to 1 year. Fritz was badly affected by prison and spent the next decade in poor health. Both the brothers participated in the Anarchistischen Föderation Deutschlands (German Anarchist Federation) and contributed to the paper 'Der Freie Arbeiter' (Free Worker).

In 1918/1919 Fritz participated in the activities of the Workers and Soldiers Councils in Fürth and he joined the FAUD, becoming influential within it as a leading proponent of the doctrine of passive resistance, and as editor of the FAUD paper 'Der Syndikalist'. He also had close friendships Gustav Landauer, the playwright Ernst Toller and Erich Muehsam.

In 1935 Fritz was arrested by the SA (Nazi stormtroopers) and detained. Following his interrogation he died a week later in hospital at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, apparently of pneumonia.