I was planning to write a post about the upcoming state election in Saxony, where there is a good chance the neo-Nazi NPD could achieve the 5% threshold and have representatives in the state government. This was to be yet another example of the alienation of the east German electorate from the democratic process. I have changed my mind after seeing the results of the state election yesterday in Saarland, formerly a bastion of the SPD. At least 20,000 votes were cast for the NPD, giving them 4% – a close call. What is going on here? Are these simply protest votes, or is there an underlying threat. The Tagesschau.de Web site has a disturbing article that describes the success that neo-Nazi groups are having in recruiting teenagers throughout Germany. ‘Operation Schoolyard’ (Aktion Schulhof) involves distributing free music CDs to kids, and the ‘music’ itself is an effective medium for conveying their message of hate:
Auch die Neonazis haben erkannt, dass sich Musik besonders gut eignet, um Inhalte zu transportieren. Dies nutzen sie. Laut Raabe und Speit gibt es im deutschsprachigen Raum inzwischen rund 380 Rechtsrockbands. Diese Bands ordneten sich durchaus politisch ein, weil sie mit ihrer Musik die rechte Ideologie verbreiteten. Die Musiker seien nicht mehr überwiegend Skinheads. Das neonazistische Spektrum habe sich anderen Subkulturen geöffnet. Neonazis liefen nicht mehr in SA-Uniformen herum, die rechte Szene sei bunter geworden, fügt Raabe hinzu.
Over 50,000 of these CDs have been distributed so far. How to counteract this??
