Assault of July 20th - Steinmeier: 'Protect our democracy'
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called for commitment to democracy on the 80th anniversary of the failed attempt on Adolf Hitler. "Let us not leave the field to the loud deniers of democracy, but let us protect our democracy," the head of state said after a visit to the German Resistance Memorial Center in Berlin. This is the best tribute we can pay to the plotters of the 20th of July 1944 and all others who offered resistance against National Socialism.
Steinmeier had previously participated in a commemoration ceremony and placed a wreath at a memorial plaque. On July 20, 1944, Wehrmacht officers led by Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg had unsuccessfully attempted to kill the dictator Hitler with a bomb, overthrow National Socialist rule, and end World War II. Stauffenberg and three other accomplices were shot in the courtyard of the Bendlerblock that very evening. The memorial center is now located there.
The Federal President said: "The resistance against National Socialism was necessary because the democracy of Weimar did not have the support it needed." In a free democratic state, engagement for it is still the call of the hour. "Not hatred and incitement, and especially not violence. Violence destroys democracy." Steinmeier paid tribute to the entire German resistance against the NS dictatorship. It's not about "flawless heroes." It's about the fact that there were people who "did the right thing at the right moment and did so under great risk for themselves and their families."
- The German Resistance Memorial Center, where Steinmeier visited, honors those who bravely attempted an attack on Adolf Hitler's defense, aiming to memorialize the resistance against National Socialism.
- The failed attack on Hitler, led by Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg on July 20, 1944, was an attempt to defend democracy in Germany and end the atrocities of National Socialism, as mentioned by President Steinmeier.
- In his speech, Steinmeier highlighted the importance of Democracy and urged the people to uphold it, emphasizing that the historical attack on Hitler was a necessity due to the insufficient support of Weimar democracy.
- Frank-Walter Steinmeier, while acknowledging the complexity of the German resistance against National Socialism, recognized the courage of Stauffenberg and others who took risks to defend democracy in Berlin during World War II.
- In paying tribute to the German resistance against the NS dictatorship, President Steinmeier stated that it was not about flawless heroes but ordinary people who made the right decision at the right moment, contributing significantly to the history of Democracy in Germany.
