Is Germany Turning Fascist Again? The Election Outcome Should Scare You
Let’s just call it what it is: a step toward Nazism.
As an American, I feel relieved when I see the direction my country is going in. I was terrified about Trump Era 2, and it’s starting to look like that will not happen. (Vote anyway, people.)
Europe, on the other hand, is starting to scare me. I’m seeing a lot of 2016 America in Europe. Stateside, here’s what I’ve been hearing:
Britain has been having race riots. I’ve heard people accuse the British government of punishing people for criticizing immigration policies, “dead zones” where police won’t go in immigrant neighborhoods, and worse.
Germany has been seeing anti-Muslim and anti-Indian riots. There have been rumors of police refusing to enforce laws in Muslim neighborhoods. Anti-immigration has become a major platform in Germany.
People want Britain’s government out. I’ve also seen people attacking police cars in both Germany and the UK on videos.
Germans are increasingly fed up with pro-immigration policies. Germany is famously welcoming to foreigners, or at least, it was.
A lot of this is stuff I would normally assume is just hearsay and right-wing hubbub propagated by fascist websites. I brushed it off until I found the new news headlines the other day.
Germany voted in AfD party members — and that’s a scary thing.
AfD, also known as Alternative for Germany, is a far-right political organization. It’s also the only far-right political organization to have been voted into Germany since 1945.
Admittedly, this victory was not entirely nationwide. Most of the seats won were in Thuringia and Saxony. However, it’s still a shocking experience for everyone to see for multiple reasons:
The party basically pushed its entire campaign on far-right, fascist ideologies with a heavy anti-immigration emphasis. Something similar happened in the 1930s. Tell me if you remember that in your history books.
AfD gained allies in a left-leaning group that also is taking a strong stance against immigration. This is not normal. It signifies that Germany is really railing against former leader Angela Merkel’s “Open Door” policy toward immigrants.
AfD is so notoriously fascist, it’s actually under domestic surveillance. The German government noted it as a threat to the country’s constitution.
It’s impossible to ignore the growing popularity of Alternative for Germany. Look, those numbers don't lie. Germany (unlike other countries) has free elections. AfD and anti-immigration leftist group Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, known as BSW, both gained seats.
For people looking to leave America, the anti-immigration rhetoric is alarming. Bad as it is for me, it’s become abundantly clear that some immigrants are going to have it harder than others.
Alternative for Germany is a Nazi party — and their propaganda is proof.
Nazism is famous for vilifying outsiders as the first step toward gaining power. It’s about creating an enemy that people can unite against. And AfD has been turning Islam into a boogeyman for years.
Behold. This propaganda poster was an election poster created by AfD, encouraging Germans to vote for their party. It was not created this year. It was actually featured in Politico in an article posted in 2017 regarding AfD’s far-right, racist propaganda.
Sadly, it’s not just AfD. The Interior Ministry of Bayern also posted videos painting Muslim women as a threat to Europe.
It’s wild seeing the people behind this literally make Muslim men look demonic. You know — just in case you didn’t understand that they want you to see that “Muslims=bad.”
This is not unlike the type of propaganda that Nazis used to warn people against “untermensch” such as Jews and Roma people. The way they made Muslims into caricatures hasn’t changed either.
A lot of people might say it’s not quite the same thing because it’s not as heavy-handed. Don’t worry, AfD’s hatred isn’t just anti-Muslim. They also made caricatures of us LGBT folk.
Another key part of Nazi platforms is “Germany for Germans first.” This comes with glorifying the traditional white, straight, blonde German family.
Allow me to show you this poster, also published by the AfD.
To add a comparison, I found a Nazi propaganda poster from 1938.
It’s uncanny, isn’t it? The AfD didn’t even bother trying to hide the Nazi salutes in the “house” on the poster.
The rise in Nazism should scare every single German, Brit, American, and human being around.
It’s true that immigration, particularly climate-based immigration, is becoming a major issue. It’s also true that immigrants should be expected to integrate into society without breaking laws or limiting freedoms of others.
It’s not true, nor is it correct, to assume that immigrants will destroy a country. It’s definitely not true to assume that banning immigration, posting hate flyers, and returning to Nazism is a wise choice.
If immigrants in a country don't play by the rules, they can be deported, permanently banned, and/or jailed with state-approved penalties. That’s normal.
Whatever Germany is doing now is not normal and I feel like we’re not freaking out about it as much as we should be. This is a worrisome sign that history could repeat itself — and that millions could die.
Less than a century ago, Germany learned how destructive sowing the seeds of hate can be for their society.
Much like how modern Germans started to vote in AfD and other anti-immigration groups due to being disgruntled with Angela Merkle, the Germans of the Weimar Republic voted in Hitler as a reaction to a shit economy with weak leadership.
Hitler did not have the majority of the vote. Neither does AfD. However, both groups carefully massaged hatred, suspicion, fear, and disgust into the mainstream population with the goal of making them hate outsiders.
Hitler succeeded. It resulted in the mass murder of millions of people — men, women, and children. It caused Germany to become a major threat to the world, sparking a devastating global war that was only quashed with a nuke.
AfD is following Hitler, step by step. Fascism always self-cannibalizes. Germany worked hard to heal itself after World War II, but many of our world’s current issues still stem from that war.
Sadly, those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it. So, which way, Germany? Are you going to follow the path of hate-filled self-destruction or are you going to follow the path of growth?
Choose wisely, Europe. Your survival will depend on your ability to adapt, embrace, and coexist.
I am going to be the unpopular voice in the comments i guess...there is a way immigration works and another way that polarizes the country and has great detrimental effects - Germany erroneously let in everyone (likely opening it's borders as a mea culpa) Then swaths of muslims set up places to indoctrinate and brainwash their youth that anyone that didnt believe in Allah was the enemy. From the Quran [9.29] Fight those who do not believe in Allah. Not to mention those who came in and siphon off the system. My neighbours are from Ethiopia and my govt in Cda pays them $4800/month to live here for the next 3 yrs...Im in an apt and they live in a house that I cant afford after working 20 yrs....are people upset - you betcha - will they vote for someone who will put an end to this - what do u think...
WTF? Those posters are unreal.
Thanks for sharing this. It’s one thing to hear about it, but laying it out with all the images hits so much deeper.