Sylt Warns of Potential Severe Reputation Harm
Youngsters scream hateful slurs at Sylt, causing a countrywide uproar and damaging the island's reputation. A viral video of this incident has sparked a national debate.
Women donning fashionable watches and large sunglasses saunter barefoot with their kids towards the beach in Kampen. Lavish vehicles bask in the sun this hot June afternoon, parked in front of Club Pony on Sylt. Their owners sip chilled Grayburgunder on the local's patio, which created headlines nationwide a month back.
At that time, a video emerged showing young people screaming hateful slurs while partying on the patio. The backlash was immense. Currently, there's no indication of the chaos that unfolded in the prestigious town of Kampen at first glance. The mayor hopes that the widespread racism scandal has sensitized the public. The Sylter Dehoga emphasizes the importance of courage - fearing potential long-term image damage if there are more incidents.
Three individuals, two men, and a woman, have seen a change in their lives since then: They are visible in the video filmed on Pfingstsamstag at a party with over 500 attendees on the terrace. It shows young people seemingly indifferent to the world, carefree and shouting "Germany for the Germans, foreigners out!" to the beat of "L'amour toujours" by Gigi D'Agostino. One man does a gesture akin to the Hitler salute. The police disclosed the incident on May 24th.
Prosecutor's office investigation ongoing
A month post the video's publication, the Prosecutor's Office in Flensburg is still investigating the two men and the young woman. According to Oberstaatsanwalt Bernd Winterfeldt, the investigations will likely take several weeks. They are investigating for incitement to hatred, and against one of the men, for using symbols of unconstitutional organizations.
The Club Pony owners publicly addressed the situations shortly after the incidents. Now, they decline to comment on questions from dpa. On the Instagram page of the bar, the pinned post from four weeks ago still exists, where they distanced themselves from the incident, spoke out against "racism, fascism, and any form of discrimination," and announced they would report the responsible party guests.
The club owners shared death threats they received, wrote on the Instagram profile of the club. "We are verbally abused to the worst and receive death threats," they wrote. In addition, they published a sequence from a surveillance video that offers another perspective of the scene.
Only "Champagne Shower"
About two weeks ago, the organizers shared sequences from a Pfingstparty without racist slurs or any connection to the incident on Instagram: Young women dance there with full glasses in tight dresses and short skirts, men enthusiasm wave in white shirts to Techno beats, bright drone images show luxury cars and quick swings over revelers on the terrace. Champagne is poured from Magnum bottles, and simultaneously, the inscription "Champagne-Shower" with three champagne bottle emojis is superimposed.
The prosecutor's office is also investigating two more cases - both supposedly occurred in Kampen during Pentecost. In one club, a guest reportedly yelled "Germany for Germans, foreigners out!" An investigation for incitement of the people is underway. In a third case, a suspect has been found - he must answer for bodily harm, incitement of the people, and property damage. He is accused of attacking and racially insulting a 29-year-old woman on a street near a beach bar in Kampen on Pentecost Sunday - according to the police, the woman was only lightly injured during the attack.
The atmosphere in the village has finally settled down after some turbulent days, said Kampen's mayor Stefanie Böhm (Kampen Voter Association). "Sylt possesses a magnetic charm: The nationwide media attention following the incident at the Pony may cause some people to be more cautious and attentive." This could thus contribute to many looking more closely and listening more carefully at similar occurrences elsewhere. "We must all be vigilant and attentive in such matters." Such behavior is unwelcome at any party, celebration, or gathering.
Dirk Erdmann, CEO of the Sylter Wirtschafts- und Gewerbeverein and operator of the Hotel Rungholt in Kampen, expressed relief: "We're glad that the situation has calmed down, but we all need to show civil courage, that's essential, so that such things don't happen again." The European elections have clearly demonstrated Germany's political direction - the low results of the AfD in Schleswig-Holstein also reveal that the northernmost federal state and thus Sylt "cannot be described as a stronghold of the right-wing."
"Sylt was, is, and will remain an open and hospitable island," shared Florian Korte, spokesperson for the Gemeinde Sylt. After the video with racist jeering became known, the community coordinated with the Tourism Service and published a joint statement in a short time. This statement, of course, still exists.
As a response to the video with racist jeering, several dozen people had gathered in Kampen for a vigil against right-wing extremism. They aimed to send a message. A few days later, a small group of about ten punks marched through Westerland under the slogan "Speak out against the right!" Later, the initiative "Sylt against the right" planned a larger demonstration in front of the Rathaus in Westerland.
For the student caught in the mockery, the aftermath was more than just police inquiries: She was at risk of being kicked out from the university. Yet, surprisingly, the Exmatrikulationsausschuss of the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences recently reversed this decision. Regrettably, a restriction order against the student, valid until the end of July, remains enforced.
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The ongoing Prosecutor's Office investigation includes the two men and the young woman from the video, accused of incitement to hatred and using symbols of unconstitutional organizations due to their involvement in the right-wing extremist incident.
Following the right-wing extremist incident, community leaders in Sylt have emphasized the importance of civil courage to prevent such incidents from happening again, with Dirk Erdmann, CEO of the Sylter Wirtschafts- und Gewerbeverein, stressing that Sylt "cannot be described as a stronghold of the right-wing."
