23.07.2014 Halle: agitation against Rroma

German newspapers report on agitation against Rroma in Halle. Around 700 people have organised themselves over Facebook and deliberately incite hatred against immigrant Rroma. This happens both in the social network, as well as adds on public sidewalks, walls, and junction boxes, on which xenophobic slogans were attached. In the meantime, the authorities removed them. The prosecution has taken up investigations on suspicion of demagoguery: “But the anger of local residents become more intense and has gone public. On the weekend, doorways were smeared, among others with the slogan “Roma out”, with the S replaced by the runes of the squadron-SS. On a specifically founded Facebook group, expressions like “filthy pack” and “brutes” were posted. OnemMember of this group is also the CDU member of parliament Christoph Bergner – what has let to protest at the political level” (Wiemann 2014). Bergner, in return, tries to appease and dissociates himself from the xenophobic manifestations decidedly. He wants to take the concerns of local residents seriously but dissociates himself from the hostile comments, he stated. The message about problems with immigrant Rroma is symptomatic of a one-sided reporting, which usually portrays Rroma pejoratively. The difficulties with the immigrants seem to be exaggerated. There are also other voices, which don’t report any problems with the new residents. Not all immigrants from Romania and Bulgaria are Rroma, since they represent only a minority there. There are also ethnic Bulgarians and Romanians who migrate to Germany. In addition, a minority should not be equated with an underclass. There are also many Rroma who belong to the middle class. The negative propaganda against Rroma negates all these details. This is dangerous. Romani Rose, chairman of the central council of German Sinti and Rroma, meanwhile calls for stronger involvement of the authorities. The state is too lenient towards inflammatory language, as the last election campaign showed, when racist slogans such as “money for grandma instead for Sinti and Roma” were tolerated upon reference to freedom of expression, Rose states (compare Halle Spektrum 2014, Möbius/Prasse 2014, Wiemann 2014).