Antisemitism and Xenophobia in Germany Notes

Antisemitism in West Germany

  • Decline in Anti-Jewish Attitudes: Compared to the 1950s, research indicates a gradual decrease in antisemitic sentiments in West Germany.
  • Education Level: Higher education correlates with lower antisemitism. 20% of those with less schooling exhibited antisemitic attitudes, compared to only 5% of those with a college education.
  • Generational Shift: As the generation directly involved in the Nazi era diminishes, subsequent generations display increasingly similar attitudes, reducing the impact of age as a dominant factor.
  • Age Group Differences: Differences in antisemitic attitudes between the 18-29 year-old group and the 30-50 year-old group are negligible, suggesting a convergence of attitudes among younger demographics.

The GDR and the East German States

  • Lack of Prior Studies: No studies on antisemitism exist for East Germany before 1990, making it difficult to track changes and influencing factors.
  • Right-Wing Extremism Among Adolescents: Empirical findings prior to the fall of the Berlin Wall confirm the presence of right-wing extremism among adolescents in the socialist GDR.
  • Nazi Ideology Sympathizers: In 1988, a study by the Central Institute for Research on Youth in Leipzig revealed that approximately 10-15% of young people sympathized with Nazi ideology (H. Müller 1991, Friedrich and Schubarth 1991).
  • Neo-Nazi Activities: Around thirty cases annually, involving sixty offenders, were prosecuted for neo-Nazi activities in 1988 and 1989.
  • Antisemitism Comparison (East vs. West): Two surveys at the end of 1990 indicated that East Germans exhibited less antisemitism than West Germans across all areas of prejudice (Wittenberg, Prosch, and Abraham 1991, Jodice 1991).
  • West-East Ratio (1991): A comparative study in late 1991 found a West-East ratio of 16% versus 4% of Germans with antisemitic attitudes (Der Spiegel 1992: 70 f.).
  • Confirmation of Findings: Studies from 1994 corroborated these findings, showing consistent differences in attitudes toward World War II, Nazism, and the Holocaust (Forsa 1994, Golub 1994).
  • Link to Attitudes Toward Jews: Viewpoints on World War II, Nazism, and the Holocaust have been closely linked to attitudes toward Jews in both parts of Germany since 1945.
  • Knowledge and Rejection of National Socialism: Respondents in East Germany generally showed more specific knowledge of National Socialism, rejected it more decisively, and tended less toward rationalization.
  • Election Results: Election results reflect minimal support for ultraright-wing parties in the new federal states.
  • "Republikaner" Party: The best election result for the "Republikaner" Party in 1994 was 1.4% in the state assembly elections of Saxony-Anhalt.

Antisemitic Attitudes by Age Group, 1949-1991

  • Table 2.1 Data:
    • 1949:
      • 18-30: 26%
      • 30-50: 23%
      • 50-64: 25%
      • 65+: 17%
      • N = 2,000
    • West Germany (1991):
      • 16-24: 12%
      • 25-35: 13%
      • 36-49: 14%
      • 50-64: 22%
      • 65+: 23%
      • N = 1,875
    • East Germany (1991):
      • 16-24: 6%
      • 25-35: 3%
      • 36-49: 4%
      • 50-64: 3%
      • 65+: 6%
      • N = 947
  • Sources: IfD 1949, Emnid-Institut 1992