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Donald Trump has been President of the United States for three and a half years, which gives him immense personal power. It has been clear from the beginning that he will not be a president of peace, but his campaign was too much based on racism and sexism. But I also found it difficult to compare him with Hitler, simply because this comparison is worth less if you use it too often. That is over now.
America blooms in fascism
National Socialism accompanies us throughout our school years – how it came about, what happened and how it was possible for Hitler to transform a democracy into a dictatorship. Well, if you want an illustrative example, please look to America. For years, Trump has been talking about any negative press as “fake news” and talking about the media as “enemies of the people”. This is called discrediting. He ensures that trust in the media declines in order to make his followers dependent on him. Discrediting and closing down the free media was also one of the first steps of the Nazis. Another characteristic of fascist states is the selection of an enemy image against which one can agitate. In America, it is peaceful demonstrators who are protesting police violence against black Americans. They join a long line of public enemy images. Muslims, blacks, gays, Mexicans. Any of them are always to blame. The fact that the disproportionality of black crime compared to white crime is directly related to the lack of social opportunities for African Americans is neglected.
These pictures shake the world
For days I have seen nothing but videos in which police officers start beating peaceful demonstrators, throwing tear gas at them, or even shooting them with rubber bullets. The only thing that interrupts this is videos pretending solidarity with the protests, only to be busy throwing tear gas 20 minutes later, according to eyewitness accounts. Even a video in which a police car drives into a crowd regardless of losses is circulating on the Internet. And I wonder what justifies the kind of violence. Let us assume that it was actually the demonstrators who were responsible for the broken windows of shops (which is controversial, sometimes even refuted), then it would be justified to act so violently against a group of people, including children and accompanying journalists ? What gives a police officer the right to shoot an unarmed person, even a journalist, with a rubber bullet at close range? Trump announced a few days ago that he would use the military against his own population. America has invaded other countries for less.
The protesters against the rest
But it’s not just the government that is fighting the demonstrators. Videos appeared in Fishtown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, showing how a vigilante white Americans armed with firearms and baseball bats, side by side with the police – after the curfew – attacked the demonstrators. Mind you, journalists have already been attacked for being away after 7 p.m. Only a week after George Floyd’s death and after protests continued, Federal Government press spokesman Steffen Seibert commented on the issue. His statements … well, how to say, leave much to be desired. One condemns the “avoidable death”, one observes the situation “closely”, but one sees no reason to take further steps. American democracy is a strong democracy and the American rule of law will take care of it … no punch line. I mean, yes, he does. Now. After a week of massive rioting, because America would rather hit demonstrators than arrest four police officers who killed a black man. Not to mention the numerous other murders of white police officers who continue to do their work with impunity. George Floyd, Tamir Rice, Michael Brown, Breonna Taylor … they are only a small part of those who have been victims of the American “rule of law”.
A cause for concern?
We no longer see the beginnings of a fascist regime in America, no, the very first stone was rolled out under President Richard Nixon at the latest (keyword “Law and Order” campaign). And the federal government refuses to name the problem and is reluctant to condemn the violent use of the militarized police complex. The government of a state whose constitution contains anti-fascism is silent in the face of genuine fascism. Do you want to change something? Find organizations to donate to. Examples would be Campaign Zero, which is looking for ways to cope with police violence through targeted political measures and increased police control, or the Black Visions Collective, which strives for a long-term change in public perception of police violence and racial injustice. Listen to the voices of members of marginalized groups. Listen to their experiences. Believe them when they tell you that racism is a huge problem in Germany too.
I’m afraid for the world we live in I’m afraid for America. I’m afraid of what the future holds. But one thing must be certain forever.
Black Lives Matter.
Because All Lives Can’t Matter
Until Black Lives finally do.
