Turkish culture club firebombed in Münster
A recent string of attacks on a Turkish consulate and a Turkish culture club in the city of Münster are believed to have been carried out by individuals of Kurdish background. This article mentions some of the tensions between Kurds and Turks living in Turkey which continues to be the subject of international concern from […]
German minister says headscarf ban could backfire
Thomas de Maiziere, Germany interior minister and member of the CDU, expressed to a newspaper his worry of a backlash against Christian symbols if Germany were to ban headscarves. Additionally, he said he would be fine if a woman were to wear a headscarf in his ministry if it as an expression of religious belief, […]
Too Left for Germany
Jannine Menger Hamilton is an immigrant who was raised and educated in Germany. Hamilton appears to be the star example of successful integration and yet she is being denied naturalization because she is a member of a leftist party which according to German authorities is too left. Those preventing Hamilton’s citizenship status are contending that […]
Possibility of “Nazi College” in Trebnitz?
Two prominent figures in the German Neo-Nazi movement, Thomas Wulff and Axel Schunk, recently purchased the decaying Trebnitz palace in an East German village, also named Trebnitz, located 20 miles southwest of Leipzig. While regional authorities worried that the manor will be used as some sort of training center or “Nazi college,” locals in the […]
German authorities arrest suspected Islamist fundraisers
German police arrested two men, and one woman for allegedly sending money to the Islamic Jihad Union. The Jihad Union is suspected of planning to carry out terrorist attacks on various German targets. One man, and the women were arrested in the southern city of Ulm having sent $3620 to the Union, while the other […]
Fashion labels worn by Europe’s skinheads restore their reputation
Labels such as Fred Perry, Ben Sherman,Doc Marten and Lonsdale have long been recognized as the favored uniform of skinheads and neo-Nazis alike but recently this trend is fading. Because the German government has been enforcing stricter laws on symbolism related to these groups many members have moved away from visible labels. Groups like the […]
Multiculturalism through the eyes of Anke
This sketch provides a bit of a comic relief in the midst of racist tensions of the topics brought up in the readings in “Germany in Transit”. Anke Engelke – a german comedian, plays a teacher, who is giving a “German for Foreigners” lecture to turkish students. The students are fluent in German, since it […]
Dresden’s ‘Civil Courage’
This article, A City Mobilizes Against Neo-Nazis, also describes the events of February 13th, 2010 in Dresden, where counter-protesters clashed with and successfully prevented an extreme right-wing protest on the 65th anniversary of the bombing of Dresden. The article is informative, because it provides a number of quotes from politicians about the counter-protest and its […]
Dresdner bilden Menschenkette gegen Fremdenhass
The article “Dresdner bilden Menschenkette gegen Fremdenhass” depicts the scene that took place on February 13th, 2010, where 15.000 people in Dresden formed a line in remembrance of the night and the victims of the bombings of February 13th, 1945. In addition, the article states that the people set a sign against xenophobia and war. […]
Kein Marsch durch Dresden
Every year in Dresden, on the anniversary of the Allied bombing of the city, there have been Neo-Nazi gathers held to attempt to show the injustice of culpability for the atrocities of World War II. This year however, to speak against intolerance, Dresden responded with a counter protest that kept the Neo-Nazis from their intended […]