Berlin/Frankfurt am Main.
First he used the “N-word”, then he drew a Holocaust comparison – after heavy criticism, Boris Palmer has now announced a break.
- First he used the N-word, then Boris Palmer compared criticism of him to the Holocaust
- The Mayor of Tübingen has once again caused a scandal
- Now the politician is taking the consequences – and wants to take a break
After his racist remarks Boris Palmer massive criticism. Now Tübingen’s mayor has announced that he wants to take a break. He announced this on Monday in a personal statement that was available to the German Press Agency. Südwestrundfunk (SWR) had previously reported on it. Palmer writes that it is clear that things cannot go on like this. The statement said that he could no longer put up with the repeated storms of outrage on his family, friends and supporters, the Tübingen city administration, the municipal council and the city community.
Previously had also Palmer’s attorney, the Green politician Rezzo hose, turned away from the mayor of Tübingen. Hose said on his website: “Immediately after I became aware of the scandal for which Boris Palmer was responsible in Frankfurt, I gave up my personal and political loyalty and support, as well as my legal representation.” “Insults and insults by left-wing provocateurs” also do not justify drawing parallels to the persecution of the Jews.
Palmer caused a stir on Friday with a verbal argument with a group in front of a migration conference in Frankfurt am Main. Several videos are circulating on social media of the politician, who justified his use of the “N-word” in a lecture and thus upset the students. The statements made at the conference “Managing Migration, Shaping Plurality. Challenges and Concepts of Immigration Policies” at the Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main.
Boris Palmer: Excitement about the use of the N-word
Flashback: Palmer had one before university building used the “N-word” several times – apparently to a black speaker. One of the videos shows him getting into an argument with students. They confronted the mayor with shouts of “Nazis out”. Palmer echoed this, saying “I don’t want any Nazis in this country”.
But the mayor didn’t stop there and replied to the crowd: “You judge people by a single word. It’s nothing more than that Jewish star. That’s because I used a word that you attach everything else to. If you say a wrong word, you are a Nazi. Think about it.”
He told the German Press Agency: “I have the method of protestersto stamp me as a Nazi and racist, to shout down and exclude me as a comparison.” He explained to the protesters that Nazis took the graves of his ancestors with them Hakenkreuzen smeared them and replied that “their method of ostracism and exclusion is no different from the Star of David”.
More about “racism”: After the Hanau attack – “Germany has a racism problem”
Boris Palmer: Unrest and opposition at migration conference
In another video, he argued that context is important when using the N-word. Saying the word to a Black person is “justiciable An insult“. But if one discusses whether Astrid Lindgren’s novels should in future contain the South Sea King or the N-Word King (Palmer pronounced the word in the context), then that is “a perfectly legitimate use of the word,” says Palmer.
Also read: Censorship accusation: James Bond novels changed because of racism
These statements provoke criticism from the students. In addition to the protests in front of the building, there were apparently also protests in the room contradiction. According to the “FAZ” report, several participants in the conference are said to have objected. The moderator of the event is said to have left the room with the words “Mr. Palmer, I don’t want anything to do with you anymore”.
Several users on Twitter shared the video Event. The “N-Word” was censored to protect those affected and to prevent the reproduction of the racist term.
Boris Palmer: Justification of the controversial statements
Palmer justified his controversial statements on Facebook: “I do not share the theory that a speech act in itself reproduces racist structures.” He says the N-word because he doesn’t accept language rules.
However, “the highly controversial word” is not one of his active ones vocabulary, he continues to write. “I only use it when there’s a discussion about whether you’re already a racist if you use it. For me, the context decides that.”
Palmer confirmed to the dpa that his Jewish ancestors were being persecuted by the Nazis. Already in 2021 he addressed his family history on Facebook: His ancestors are buried in the Jewish cemetery in Königsbach, dating back to the 18th century. In 1937 the family managed to flee to the USA. His father stayed in the Remstal as the “illegitimate child of a non-Jew and was called Moses at school by the teacher, not Helmut”.
Also read: Nazi period: what did grandpa do between 1933 and 1945?
University president expects Palmer to apologize
The President of the Frankfurt University, Enrico Schleiff, condemned this Holocaust comparison and the use of the racist term in the strongest possible terms. “Any explicit or implicit statement relativizing the Holocaust is completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated at and by Goethe University – this applies equally to the use of racist terms,” it said in one opinion on Saturday.
Schleiff expects “not just a public apology from Mr. Palmer to his An insult affected persons, but also to the Jewish community and to the Goethe University.”
Boris Palmer: Again and again criticism for controversial statements
It’s not the first time the Lord Mayor is criticized for his statements. In the past, Palmer had caused a stir with his use of the “N-word.” In May 2021, he used it in a Facebook post about former soccer international Dennis Aogo, who has a Nigerian father.
He was also heavily criticized for this by his Green Party colleagues at the time. The racist “N-word” used to be used in Germany to describe black people. His pointed statements on refugee policy repeatedly caused controversy and accusations of racism.
A year ago ended a party exclusion procedure with a compromise for Palmer to suspend his membership of the Greens until the end of this year. Last October he ran in Tübingen as an independent candidate and was re-elected for a third term in the first ballot with an absolute majority – against the Green Party candidate, among others. He has been mayor of the Swabian university town since 2007.
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