Thilo Sarrazin

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Integration requires effort from those that are to be integrated. I will not show respect for anyone who is not making that effort. I do not have to acknowledge anyone who lives by welfare, denies the legitimacy of the very state that provides that welfare, refuses to care for the education of his children and constantly produces new little headscarf-girls. This holds true for 70 percent of the Turkish and 90 percent of the Arab population in Berlin. [26] [27] [28]

End of August 2010, Sarrazin's book Deutschland schafft sich ab ( Germany Abolishes Itself ) was published, and within two months, it became the best-selling book on politics by a German-language author in a decade, with overall sales hitting 1.1 million copies [5] and the first editions sold out within a matter of hours or days. In the 13th edition Sarrazin added a foreword commenting on the nationwide debate his book has sparked. [29] As of May 2011, 1.5 million copies had been sold. [30] In 2010, he was quoted as writing regarding Islam, "No other religion in Europe makes so many demands. No immigrant group other than Muslims is so strongly connected with claims on the welfare state and crime. No group emphasizes their differences so strongly in public, especially through women's clothing. In no other religion is the transition to violence, dictatorship and terrorism so fluid." [31]

In 2010, Sarrazin's book came under criticism for claiming that Germany's immigrant Muslim population is reluctant to integrate and tends to rely more on social services than to be productive. Moreover, he calculated that their population growth may well overwhelm the German population within a couple of generations at the current rate, and that their intelligence was lower. He proposed stringent reforms for the welfare system to rectify the problems. [32] [33] The first edition of his book sold out within a few days. By the end of the year, the book had become Germany's number 1 hard-cover non-fiction bestseller for the year and was still at the top of the lists. [34]

Genetics

In 2010, an uproar was caused at an interview with Welt am Sonntag in which he claimed that "all Jews share a certain gene like all Basques share a certain gene that distinguishes these from other people." [35] [36] He subsequently offered his regrets for the irritation caused, [28] and explained his source, for instance, in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , [37] referring to international media reports, [38] on a 2010 study by Gil Atzmon et al. that appeared in the American Journal of Human Genetics . [39]

In 2018, Sarrazin's statements were criticized by the chairman of the Interior Committee of the German Bundestag, Sebastian Edathy (SPD), the United Services trade union and the political scientist Gerd Wiegel. The Central Council of Jews in Germany strongly criticized Sarrazin, condemning him as racist. [40] [41] Sigmar Gabriel, the General Secretary of the SPD, condemned Sarrazin for his eugenic approach. [42]

Reception

A Berliner Morgenpost poll suggested that almost half of the German population agree with Sarrazin's political views and 18 percent would vote for his party if he started one. [43] In a survey conducted for the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper among 10,000 Sarrazin readers, an overwhelming majority was shown to be male, middle-class, middle-aged to elderly, conservatives. [44]

The German-Turkish sociologist and best-selling author Necla Kelek, who has defended Sarrazin, introduced him at a Berlin press conference in August 2010 attended by roughly 300 journalists. While Turkish and Islamic organizations have accused Sarrazin of racism and damaging Germany's reputation abroad, Kelek said Sarrazin addressed "bitter truths" in his book and the chattering classes judged it without reading it. [45]

The new terror of virtue

The publication of his book "Deutschland schafft sich ab" provoked accusations that Sarrazin was stoking racism and xenophobia. [46] This harsh criticism inspired Sarrazin to write "Der neue Tugendterror - Über die Grenzen der Meinungsfreiheit in Deutschland" (The new terror of virtue - on the limits of freedom of opinion in Germany) on the topics of the mechanics of political correctness, prejudice and the political climate in Germany, as he explains in the second chapter of this book, titled "Wie ich mit der Meinungsherrschaft in Konflikt kam: Eine Fallstudie" ("How I got into conflict with the rule of opinion: a case study"). "I had expected a controversial discussion. But nothing had prepared me for the public storm that broke loose upon publication. I was accused of advocating biological determinism and labelled a social Darwinist, a racist, and an enemy of the people and of social justice." [47]

Selected works

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References

  1. bundesbank.de: Press release of the Executive Board of the Deutsche Bundesbank Archived 2011-07-26 at the Wayback Machine 9 September 2010
  2. http://bloomberg.com: Bundesbank Says Sarrazin Will Resign on Sept. 30 After Jewish Gene Remark
  3. Dernbach, Andrea (30 January 2020). "Er zeigt genau den antimuslimischen Rassismus, den er abstreitet". Der Tagesspiegel Online. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  4. "'Massive Pressure': Islam Critic Sarrazin Resigns from Bundesbank Board". Der Spiegel. 10 September 2010. Retrieved 15 September 2018 via Spiegel Online.
  5. 1 2 "Sarrazin bricht Verkaufsrekord". Der Spiegel . 29 October 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  6. tagesschau.de. "Oberstes SPD-Gericht bestätigt Parteiausschluss Sarrazins". tagesschau.de (in German). Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  7. Koch, Tanit (11 October 2009). "Thilo Sarrazin ist ein großer Integrationserfolg". Die Welt (in German). Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  8. Rosenthal, John (1 September 2010). "The Saracen and the Jews". The Weekly Standard . Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  9. Alexander Neubacher: "Der Weichen-Steller" in Der Spiegel Nr. 39, 2007, pp. 74–76.
  10. Hoffmann, Andreas (13 May 2009). "Kinder kann kriegen, wer damit fertig wird". Stern (in German). Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  11. Gehrke, Kerstin; Oloew, Matthias (8 January 2010). "Letzter Akt in der Tempodrom-Affäre". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  12. Rennefanz, Sabine (29 August 2009). "Ein Geruch von Vetternwirtschaft". Berliner Zeitung (in German). Archived from the original on 15 September 2010. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  13. Sarrazin wehrt sich gegen Untreue-Vorwürfe. Focus , 29 August 2009. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 3 March 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  14. "Berliner Finanzsenator. Sarrazin wird Bundesbank-Vorstand". Spiegel Online (in German). 17 February 2009. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  15. "Executive Board of the Deutsche Bundesbank: Dr Thilo Sarrazin". Deutsche Bundesbank . Archived from the original on 2 September 2010. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  16. "Sarrazin's Jewish 'gene' comments spark outrage - The Local" . Retrieved 16 March 2023.
  17. "Executive Board of the Deutsche Bundesbank submits application for the dismissal of Dr Thilo Sarrazin". Deutsche Bundesbank . 2 September 2010. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  18. "Press release in German of the Executive Board of the Deutsche Bundesbank". Deutsche Bundesbank . 9 September 2010. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  19. "'Massive Pressure':Islam Critic Sarrazin Resigns from Bundesbank Board". Der Spiegel . 10 September 2010. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  20. SPD Website Archived 2011-07-25 at the Wayback Machine Secretary-General Sigmar Gabriel's announcement of the expulsion proceedings
  21. "Sarrazin remains SPD member", The Local – Germany's News in English, 22 April 2011
  22. "Sarrazin pardon sparks fierce SPD backlash", The Local – Germany's News in English, 26 April 2011
  23. DPA (11 July 2019). "Thilo Sarrazin kündigt Berufung "durch alle Instanzen" an". Die Welt (in German). Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  24. "Personen A–Z: Dr. Thilo Sarrazin". SPD Berlin (in German). Archived from the original on 3 September 2010. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  25. "Thilo Sarrazin – der Unerschütterliche". Berliner Morgenpost online (in German). Retrieved 6 September 2010.
  26. "Sarrazin muss sich entschuldigen". Die Zeit (in German). 1 October 2009. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  27. "Bundesbank-Präsident legt Sarrazin Rücktritt nahe". Die Zeit (in German). 3 October 2009. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  28. 1 2 Randow, Jana; Vits, Christian (1 September 2010). "Weber to Debate Next Sarrazin Steps as Merkel Condemns Comments". Bloomberg . Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  29. Welt am Sonntag : "Sarrazin distanziert sich von Sarrazin" (in German)
  30. Focus : "Schadet sich die SPD mit ihrem Sarrazin-Kurs?" (in German)
  31. "Thilo Sarrazin Schreibt über den Islam: "Bei keiner anderen Religion ist der Übergang zu Gewalt und Terrorismus so fließend"". 26 August 2010. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  32. "Immigration Provocateur in Germany Crosses the Line". Der Spiegel . 30 August 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
  33. "Was tun?". Der Spiegel (in German) (23 August 2010). 23 August 2010.
  34. "Jahresbestseller Hardcover 2010". Buchreport. Archived from the original on 28 August 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2011.
  35. Lowman, Stephen (31 August 2010). "German Politician Stirs Controversy with His Inflammatory Views on Muslims and Jews". The Washington Post . Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  36. Seibel, A.; Schuhmacher, H.; Fahrun, J. (29 September 2010). "Mögen Sie keine Türken, Herr Sarrazin?". Die Welt (in German). Retrieved 5 September 2010. Alle Juden teilen ein bestimmtes Gen, Basken haben bestimmte Gene, die sie von anderen unterscheiden.
  37. Müller-Jung, Joachim (1 September 2010). "Phantasma "Juden-Gen"". Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  38. Wade, Nicholas (9 June 2010). "Studies Show Jews' Genetic Similarity". The New York Times . Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  39. Atzmon, G.; Hao, L.; Pe'er, I.; Velez, C.; Pearlman, A.; Palamara, P. F.; Morrow, B.; Friedman, E.; et al. (2010). "Abraham's Children in the Genome Era: Major Jewish Diaspora Populations Comprise Distinct Genetic Clusters with Shared Middle Eastern Ancestry". American Journal of Human Genetics . 86 (6): 850–859. doi:10.1016/j.ajhg.2010.04.015. PMC   3032072 . PMID   20560205.
  40. Online, FOCUS. "Zentralrat der Juden legt Sarrazin nahe, in NPD zu wechseln" . Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  41. ""Sarrazin erweist Hitler große Ehre"". 15 September 2018. Retrieved 15 September 2018 via Sueddeutsche.de.
  42. "Gabriel über Sarrazin: Welch hoffnungsloses Menschenbild!" . Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  43. Berlin, Berliner Morgenpost - (6 September 2010). "18 Prozent der Deutschen würden Sarrazin wählen" . Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  44. "From financier to flag-bearer for Germany's far-right" . Independent.co.uk . 22 October 2011. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  45. "Sarrazin supporter defends banker's Muslim comments". BBC News. 2 September 2010. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  46. "Sarrazin: Muslims not compatible with Germany". The Local de. 10 August 2010. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
  47. "Der neue Tugendterror - Über die Grenzen der Meinungsfreiheit in Deutschland" pp. 49-116
Thilo Sarrazin
Thilo Sarrazin030709 cropped.jpg
Sarrazin in 2009
Berlin Senator of Finance
In office
17 January 2002 30 April 2009