German culture minister labeled ‘fascist’ at concentration camp event

Wolfram Weimer’s appearance at the commemoration of the site’s liberation was disrupted by protesters and victims’ relatives

German Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer was roundly heckled by protesters and victims’ relatives during a commemorative event at the Buchenwald concentration camp on Sunday.

Media magnate Weimar, whose company is at the center of a pay-for-influence networking event controversy, has also imposed an anti-Palestinian censorship regime over the Berlin Film Festival and labeled left-wing bookshops “extremist.” He defied repeated demands/requests from left-wing groups and survivor organizations to steer clear of Sunday’s event over his hardline conservative views, which they described as “far-right.” 

His 12-minute speech was repeatedly interrupted by shouts of “Alerta antifascista” and “fascist” from the crowd. The protesters also sang the Buchenwaldlied, a 1938 song created by prisoners of the camp. The minister attempted to reason with the protesters, urging them to respect the “dignity of the place” and lamenting the “intolerable developments.”

Weeks ahead of the anniversary, the Buchenwald-Dora Camp Working Group and the Buchenwald Camp Community published an open letter to the minister, demanding that he refrain from appearing at the commemoration. The organizations accused Weimer of failing to understand the legacy of the concentration camp survivors and pointed out the minister’s repeated misuse of a quote by Heinrich Heine.

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The writer, who opted to get baptized to pursue a law career, which was at the time off-limits for Jews, said that his “baptismal certificate is the ticket to European culture.” While Heine ultimately regretted having been baptized, Weimer has repeatedly painted the quote in a positive light rather than evidence of the oppression against Jews, the groups pointed out.

After assuming his ministerial post last May, Weimer has managed to get embroiled in multiple controversies. He has faced accusations of enforcing politically motivated censorship when, earlier this year, he reportedly excluded three left-wing bookstores from the Bookshop Prize, citing findings from the domestic intelligence service regarding alleged extremism. The minister ultimately scrapped the awards ceremony, claiming the controversy had “increasingly shifted focus away from the event’s main objective.” Weimer has also reportedly pressed the Berlin Film Festival into ousting its director, Tricia Tuttle, over her support for Palestine – a stance that is not in contravention of any German laws.