{"id":1272,"date":"2014-11-28T01:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-11-28T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/%20rroma.org\/28-11-2014-hostile-remarks-at-meeting-of-the-afd-alternative-for-germany\/"},"modified":"2022-07-25T15:16:40","modified_gmt":"2022-07-25T14:16:40","slug":"28-11-2014-hostile-remarks-at-meeting-of-the-afd-alternative-for-germany","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rroma.org\/de\/28-11-2014-hostile-remarks-at-meeting-of-the-afd-alternative-for-germany\/","title":{"rendered":"28.11.2014 Hostile remarks at meeting of the AfD (Alternative for Germany)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Meyer (2014) reports on \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\ta party meeting of J\u00f6rn Kruse, Hamburg chairman of the nationalist Alternative \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tfor Germany (AFD). On the occasion of the forthcoming parliamentary elections \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tin Hamburg, Kruse spoke about his political program: this is characterised by \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tstrong nationalist tendencies, even if Kruse often presented his viewpoints in \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\ta negative form and left the conclusions to the audience: \u201cThe state leader of his party is a clever and a practiced orator.<\/em> \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tHe speaks critically about immigration \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tand \u201casylum seekers\u201d, but in between always expresses understanding for war \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\trefugees, which one has to help. […] But it soon becomes clear: Kruse is a \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tverbal border crosser. Again and again in his speech, he approaches almost \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcasually taboos, just to stop right before them. Therewith, he avoids the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcharge of right-wing propaganda, but offers his listeners what they want to \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\thear<\/em>. Kruse sounds like this: \u201cI do \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tnot want to be quoted saying, in Germany that foreigners are responsible for crime.\u201d \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPause. \u201cWell, who else?\u201d, it comes from the audience.<\/em> […] Or like this: \u201eI don\u2019t want to comment the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tthesis that more migration leads to more criminality. […] Nodding, agreement. \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAn older gentleman asks what could be done against the \u201cgypsies\u201d and adds: \u201cI’ve \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\talways said Gypsy, not Roma.\u201d<\/em> Kruse \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tsays that the Roma unfortunately could not be deported because of the European \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tfree movement of persons. And then:<\/em> \u201cWe \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcannot prevent them from coming here, they have culturally induced problems of \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tintegration, we also know that many of them come here, because our child \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tbenefit are higher here than what they can earn at home.\u201d\u201d<\/em> With this \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tremarks, Kruse reproduces several stereotypical prejudices about the minority. \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe 110’000 to 130’000 Rroma who are integrated in Germany since generations \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tare denied existence. Instead, he stylizes them \u2013 in the very spirit of one-sided \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tdebate about \u201cpoverty migration\u201d \u2013 to economic migrants, who would exploit the \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGerman social security system. The integration problems ascribed to them have \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tto be seen in the context of a growing xenophobia. Integration always works on \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\ttwo sides: by the efforts of the migrants themselves, and by the willingness of \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tthe recipient country to include the migrants. This aspect is completely ignored \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tby Kruse and his party in their representation of the issue.<\/p>\n