Study: 15 percent of Germans claim superiority
New study reveals that extreme right-wing ideology, anti-Semitism popular among current German population; 14 percent believe Jews cheat in business; 35 percent express blatant xenophobia; 28 percent believe Germany should regain world status with force
A new study conducted for the German Friedrich Ebert Fund reveals that the anti-Semitic views, sense of superiority, the yearning for a strong government and the hatred of foreigners are still very strong among the German population. The researchers revealed that about 15 percent of those polled believe that the Germans have a natural superiority in comparison to other peoples.
The study was conducted by two professors from the University of Leipzig who questioned 5,000 Germans in an attempt to study their level of agreement to opinions held by the extreme right. Twenty eight percent of the participants longed for Germany to return to be a major player in the world scene and think they must use force in order to ‘reach the position they deserve.’ About eight percent are convinced that the crimes of the Nazis are grossly exaggerated.
What is mostly concerning is the longing the Germans have for darker days: Nine percent support turning Germany into a dictatorship, 15 percent are convinced that "a tyrant is better than a democracy," and 26 percent of them hope for a system of government which a single popular party will represent the entire nation.
The study also found that 27 percent of those surveyed reflect positions of hatred towards foreigners. As an example, 35 percent agree with the statement that "foreigners come to Germany only to exploit it." In eastern Germany, the poorer part of the country controlled by the communists for 50 years, 44 percent answered positively to that question.
Education doesn't cure anti-Semitism
As to anti-Semitism, the findings are extremely worrying: Ironically, the highest anti-Semitic sentiment was found in the more developed western part of Germany, where various education systems were implemented in order to combat the problem. It seems that anti-Semitism is most prevalent in the richest provinces such as Bavaria and Nordrhein-Westfalia, where 10 percent of the participants expressed anti-Semitic sentiments, whereas in the eastern parts only four percent supported anti-Jewish statements.
According to the study, 18 percent of Germans believe that the Jews, who today only number 120,000 in Germany, have too much influence, 14 percent believe that Jews are more inclined to cheat in business, and 14 percent think they are simply different and are not fit to live in Germany.
Two groups dominated the anti-Semitic views: The elderly and the unemployed. In addition, the study also found that a feeling of political powerlessness was more important to the development of right-winged positions than economic strife. The anti-Semitism is less prevalent as the level of education goes up, and among women.
However, the researchers indicate that education alone does not give immunity from the false magic of extreme right-wing ideology. In addition, affiliation to specific political parties or a particular church did not prevent people from holding extreme right wing ideologies.
For these reasons, the researchers are convinced that it is not enough to employ intelligence and legislative programs, but also widespread actions in order to eradicate the right-wing phenomena in Germany.
