Step on a torn Germany flag
Photo: Ralph Peters / imago imagesA dispute broke out between a woman and a man in an allotment garden in Hamburg. The woman has a migration background, the man does not. The woman is said to have insulted her counterpart with the words "son of a bitch", "ugly old man" and "fat potato". The man's son may have shown the Hitler salute. It is not clear who started. The proceedings are terminated.
The dispute occurred in February 2019 and is part of statistics that Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) presented in May 2020 and that is controversial. It is about "anti-German" crimes which are by definition directed against Germany or Germans. Since January 1, 2019, the Federal Criminal Police Office has registered them as "politically motivated crime", on instructions from Seehofer. The police reported 132 suspected crimes last year.
What exactly is it? SPIEGEL asked local police authorities, public prosecutors and state criminal investigation offices to report cases. Martina Renner, a member of the Left Bundestag, also made a small request to the Interior Ministry on the subject. The answers sometimes testify to helplessness.
Mirror Plus
Good reading. Understand more.
Special reports, analyzes and background information on topics that affect our society - from reporters from all over the world.
Your advantages with SPIEGEL +:
- Icon: Check
Unrestricted access
to all content on all your devices
Exclusive content
from the weekly magazine
- Icon: Check
Including digital edition
of the weekly magazine
Flexible term
can be canceled at any time
- Icon: Check
Flexible term
Cancel anytime online
A price
only € 19.99 per month
Start Free Month Buy Now Right Arrow Sign Up Now Right Arrow
Restore iTunes subscription
SPIEGEL + is processed via your iTunes account and paid for with a purchase confirmation. 24 hours before it expires, the subscription is automatically renewed by one month at the current price of € 19.99. You can cancel the subscription at any time in the settings of your iTunes account. In order to use SPIEGEL + outside of this app, you must link the subscription to a SPIEGEL ID account immediately after purchase. With the purchase you accept our general terms and conditions and privacy policy.