The Jewish Central Council issues an alarm about the intensifying influence of the Alternative for Germany (AfD)
With the state elections in Saxony and Thuringia around the corner, the Central Council of Jews in Germany and the American Jewish Committee Berlin (AJC) have sounded the alarm over the potential rise of the Alternative for Germany (AfD). In a publication released this week, titled "The Undermining Faction: How the AfD Endangers Our Democracy", the AfD is portrayed as a "volkisch-right-wing extremist", "anti-Western" group with a "flagrantly anti-Semitic philosophy".
The document provides various instances, declarations, and actions by AfD members to back this argument. It covers demeaning comments from the party regarding German commemoration culture in connection with the Holocaust, among other issues.
At a joint press conference in Berlin, Central Council President Josef Schuster stated that the AfD is not inherently anti-Semitic, yet he added, "but it is a party for anti-Semites. That's indisputable," and discussed the presence of volkisch ideologies within the AfD.
The publication accuses the party of employing a "strategic approach to anti-Semitism". It suggests that while the party disregards anti-Semitic views prevalent in German mainstream society, it targets "imported anti-Semitism" stemming from immigration from Muslim countries. Schuster maintained that the most significant danger to Jewish existence in Germany continues to emanate from the political right.
The Central Council of Jews in Germany and the American Jewish Committee Berlin are calling for strengthening efforts to combat the ideologies promoted by the Alternative for Germany, as they view the party as a volkisch-right-wing extremist group with anti-Semitic tendencies.
In its effort to weaken the impact of anti-Semitic views, the Central Council is urging for reinforced measures to counteract the AfD's strategic approach, which seeks to exploit imported anti-Semitism while downplaying prevalent anti-Semitism in German society.
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