New Year’s Eve in Cologne: the end of German hospitality?

The large-scale attack on women during New Year’s Eve in Cologne, Hamburg and other cities had revived the German debate on not only the question of asylum, but also of immigrants, integration and crime among foreigners. The mainstream media had presented material that would have been classified as extreme-right in tone before. The events in Cologne were the most egregious symbol so far of the unrealistic assumptions and expectations of the asylum policy presented by German Chancellor Angela Merkel. This was not the first sign of the state’s helplessness and unpreparedness in the face of the threats that had resulted from the migration crisis. None of the previous problems, however, had been so serious or affected the general public so directly. The scale of the incident was also too large to qualify as ‘one-off incidents’. As a result, the narration of the anti-immigrant movements and parties had been lent credence and was gaining followers, and in the light of the large-scale nature of the events in Cologne, it was getting harder to label it as racist or xenophobic. At that time, these changes applied to public opinion, but they would likely have far-reaching social and political implications, especially as in 2016 with the parliamentary elections in several Bundesländer in Germany.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Germans debate responsibility for sexual assaults http://www.europeansources.info/record/germans-debate-responsibility-for-sexual-assaults/

ESO: Background information: Will Cologne change Germany's refugee policy? http://www.europeansources.info/record/will-cologne-change-germanys-refugee-policy/

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