Alexander Görlach is an adjunct professor at New York University, where he teaches democratic theory and praxis. He lives in New York and Berlin.
A proud symbol of German industry, Volkswagen enjoys far-reaching government support. Yet as it leans on the Chinese market, it’s far from clear that the firm is going to save jobs at its German sites.
It’s been 100 years since the opening of Walter Gropius’s Bauhaus building in Dessau, but the Alternative für Deutschland wants to cut funding from centenary events. The winner of recent state elections, the far-right party labels Bauhaus un-German.
Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany party styles itself as populist and anti-elite. Yet it maintains close relationships with tech elites like Elon Musk, who was among the first to congratulate the party on Sunday’s election win.
It’s been five years since Berliners voted by referendum to expropriate the big corporate landlords. The ruling parties blocked the move, but next month’s state elections could produce a left-wing government that can finally honor the vote.
Next month’s state elections in Germany could see the Alternative für Deutschland reach power for the first time. The ruling Christian Democrats seem paralyzed and are increasingly imitating their rising far-right rival.