Extreme Elements All Around

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Alternative for Germany, Angela Merkel, Thomas Geoghegan

When I’m feeling especially glum about the current state of political affairs, I idly wonder whether the portents of danger are greater in the U.S. or Germany. Which provokes more fear: the rise of Trump and Cruz in the U.S. or the rise of the far right Alternative for Germany which now has seats in half of Germany’s state parliaments? Compounding my sense of gloom is the threat of terrorism that looms over both countries.

I scan the news for reassurance, looking for facts that will allay my fears. The AfD’s overall support in Germany, according to a new poll, is at 14%, one point higher than for the Greens. That’s bad news, but the combined support for Germany’s two main parties, Merkel’s CDU and the SPD, is 55%. Merkel herself maintains a 54% approval rating according to last month’s survey by the ARD broadcasting network, not bad for a leader who has been under siege for opening Germany’s doors to refugees.

I googled Donald Trump’s approval rating and was surprised to learn that, according to both Gallup and HuffPost, it’s about 30%. That doesn’t seem very high for a candidate who’s mopping up Republican primary votes across the U.S. But how many people are actually voting in the presidential primaries? Here are some astonishing statistics from the Pew Research Center:

Through the first 12 primaries of 2016, combined Republican turnout has been 17.3% of eligible voters – the highest of any year since at least 1980. Democratic turnout so far is 11.7% – the highest since 1992, with the notable exception of the extraordinarily high turnout in 2008.

My confidence in American democracy had been waning for years before we moved to Germany. Partisanship, ignorance, apathy….it was all so depressing. Germany has serious political problems to contend with, but Germans have much higher voter turnout than Americans and by most accounts they are better informed.

“I could sit on the ground and weep. I’d forgotten what is was like to be in a country where people read,” says Thomas Geoghegan in Were You Born on the Wrong Continent? I highly recommend Geoghegan’s book to anyone exasperated with quality of life issues in America. His persuasive and entertaining work makes a solid case for European social democracy, especially the German model.

There are some disturbing political trends in Germany right now, but I hope the higher levels of political engagement and participation here will prevent extremists from making further gains. Now that fewer refugees are arriving and relief workers have more time to manage the situation, there is reason to hope.

“We will manage,” says Merkel

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Angela Merkel, Berlin, Rathaus Wilmersdorf, refugees

Signs of a refugee crisis are not readily apparent to an ordinary resident of Berlin. Traversing the city each day I hear the same mix of Russian, Turkish, English, German and Arabic that I’m used to hearing in this city that is Germany’s closest approximation to a melting pot. But the media reports that Germany is expected to receive more than one million asylum seekers this year and that fights are breaking out in Berlin’s central refugee registration center. Angela Merkel has assured the public that “we will manage”,  but opinion polls tell us that many Germans are not convinced.

I didn’t know whether to expect chaos or calm before my first volunteer shift at the refugee center in Rathaus Wilmersdorf this week. On earlier trips past the building I’d seen few signs of the hundreds of refugees given temporary shelter there. It seemed like one of Berlin’s many historical twists of fate that someone who fled Syria or Afghanistan would survive the trip to Germany and end up in a municipal office building that was a vestige of the Nazi era.

The four hours I spent inside the building confirmed everything I’ve read about why refugees have made Germany their first choice destination. More than 800 people are living in a clean and well-organized environment where they have access to medical care, regular meals, and vast supplies of clothing and other essentials. Abundant volunteers help out in all areas of the building and provide translation services in Arabic, Farsi, and Urdu. Berliners bring a steady stream of supplies to the donation drop-off point. My very limited exposure to Berlin’s refugee relief measures reassured me that the German traits of efficiency and hard work are in ample evidence (from Germans and non-Germans alike).

My tiny part in this mammoth relief effort took place in a glass enclosed Info-Point plastered with all kinds of brochures and flyers. Almost every resident who came to my window asked me for a SIM card or phone so they could call family members they’d left behind. It was hard to look them in the eye and say that I only had information, train tickets, and bottled water to distribute. I didn’t feel very useful, but I managed to answer some questions and help with a variety of small tasks. I also had a great vantage point for watching the little kids race around the hallways and the inner courtyard on mini bikes and scooters. Although no photography is allowed, I snapped a quick shot of Berlin’s newest transit brochure, one in which the German language is noticeably absent. I believe if we all try to help a little, “we will manage.”

Stand Up – A Germany for Everyone

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Angela Merkel, anti-Semitism, Berlin, Brandenburger Tor, German Jews, Mayor Klaus Wowereit

What slogan would you have chosen for a massive rally against anti-Semitism? Does the phrase “Nie wieder Judenhass” (Never again hatred of Jews) effectively guide us toward a stronger German society that celebrates and protects Jews and other minority groups? I would have preferred a more positive slogan, but I was still moved, along with thousands of others, to “steh auf” (stand up) for yesterday’s rally at the Brandenburger Tor in Berlin. I stood with the crowd to protest anti-Semitism and to affirm that Jews belong here.

The rain held off, the mood was calm and peaceful, and the minor disturbances at the fringes were easily halted by the police. It was my first chance to hear Berlin’s Mayor Klaus Wowereit and Chancellor Angela Merkel speak in person. Their words were firm and came across as sincere as they spoke of the shame that anti-Semitic acts have brought upon Germany and the injury that such hatred causes to all Germans. It was Merkel who said that Jewish life belongs here and is a part of German identity. Most of the speakers also affirmed that not just anti-Semitism, but other forms of prejudice such as racism and homophobia have no place in Germany. In just a little over an hour, Germany’s top political and religious leaders said what the people came to hear.

But the perennial question after such unifying moments is “Where do we go from here?” If it is true that “around 20 percent of people in Germany have anti-Semitic views,” what is being done and what further things must be done to change attitudes and behavior? I’ve been looking for the best way to make my own contribution to this cause, hoping my background as an educator and a repatriated German citizen can be of value. Stay tuned for future updates.