Dispelling the Myth of ‘Parallel Societies’: Are Berlin’s Muslims a Model for Integration?
This article discusses the new report by the Open Society Institute, “Muslims in Berlin,” a study that focuses on Berlin’s Kreuzberg district and tells of a fairly positive story of integration. Far from being a parallel society, and contrary to many assumptions, Muslims in Kreuzberg make daily or weekly contact with their non-Muslim neighbors and […]
Neighbors in German Capital in Uproar over Iraqi Building
Berliners of the Dahlem district have already filed “not-in-my-backyard” legal complaints against an allegedly self-proclaimed new Iraqi embassy. Many fear that creating the equivalent of a new embassy for such a politically sensitive country in the posh neighborhood of Dahlem will increase violence in the area and drive up real estate prices. The full article […]
“Auslaender sollen unsere alten Leute pflegen” (“Foreigners should tend to our old people”)
The article “Auslaender sollen unsere alten Leute pflegen” (“Foreigners should tend to our old people”) talks about how German nurses are calling for help from abroad. The number of skilled nurses is too low for the current conditions. This is due not only to an aging population, but also because qualified nurses are emigrating. Therefore, […]
Court Rules that East Germans are not an Ethnic Group
This Der Spiegel article follows up on the Stuttgart labor court case charging a West German company with discriminating against a woman born in the former GDR. The court ruled that East Germans are not an ethnic group, a conclusion that many journalists seem to support. (See the excepted reaction articles.) However, as the writer […]
Gedenken an Befreiung der Konzentrationslager
Memorials were held at Germany’s concentration camps in Brandenburg and Niedersachsen to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the liberation. Spokespeople from the CDU and SPD were present to give speeches about how critical the National Socialist reign was in defining modern German identity and the lessons it taught the nation. Read the full article here.
Court to Decide if East Germans are Ethnic Group
This week in Stuttgart a labor court will decide on the issue of East German ethnic identity after a East German born woman filed a anti-discrimination lawsuit against a West German window manufacturer for rejecting her application on the basis of her origin. The returned resume had the words “Ossi” and a minus sign written […]
The Third Generation: German Jihad Colonies Sprout Up in Waziristan
The following article from the Spiegel discusses the third generation of Islamist terrorists since 9/11 and their relatively swift radicalization and departure for Jihad training grounds around the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan. The article focuses mainly on the story of a few of these potential terrorists, ethnic Germans or those raised in Germany. Most […]
Turkish – German writer criticized
This article talks about a Turkish-German writer who defends democracy, freedom, enlightenment, secular order and civil society. Necla Kelek’s new book “casts a critical look at Islam and condemns the oppression and lack of freedom within Turkish communities and families in Germany.” This comes from her own life experience, which she has often shared: Before […]
Homeland, Bittersweet Homeland
“Heimat, bittersuesse Heimat” (or “Homeland, Bittersweet Homeland”) is an all-black satirical theatre production that showcases real-life experiences of minorities living in a prejudiced but politically-correct society. The sketches also address cultural identity and its fluidity when the actors move smoothly from a German waltz to an African freestyle dance. While the theater group is based in […]
“No” to dual citizenship
German-born children of foreign parents will have to choose between citizenship in their birth country and their parents’ country. The article on immigration talks about three German states that proposed to allow German-born children of foreign parents to keep dual citizenship, but were denied. Chancellor’s conservative position on immigration is in line with her earlier […]