After living in Germany for almost nine years, I finally feel like I’m beginning to understand the depth of what people mean when they talk about structural racism. Of course, I’ve witnessed and experienced isolated situations before where the problem was visible on the surface. But over the years, my understanding has deepened, especially now, as populist rhetoric gains strength from a powerful politician who was elected in a democratic process.
I knew Merz would be problematic long before he positioned himself as the de facto chancellor. A few weeks ago, I told a German friend that his first openly racist remarks were only the beginning. He’s clearly speaking to a specific audience, feeding resentment and reinforcing hostility toward what he describes as "the problem in the city landscape."
What I didn’t expect was that a seventy-year-old politician would demonstrate such a lack of political wisdom, both nationally and globally.