The German government last week published a new brochure on what it believes to be antisemitic codes and symbols.
Over 80 pages, the brochure catalogues a list of concepts, terms and images ranging from Nazi-era propaganda to contemporary symbols against Israel’s genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.
Intended audiences for the brochure include teachers, “who can use the booklet as supplementary material in the classroom”, and other educational staff, who can use it as a “guideline to help recognise any anti-Semitic remarks in the working environment”.
Germany is one of the key supporters of Israel’s genocide, despite its own history of committing genocide against Jews, Slavs and Roma during the Second World War, and in Namibia in the early 20th century.
I read this trying to see if they are better than portrayed in this post, but they directly equate zionism with israel and with jews, which is antisemitic. This is insane.
Questioning the German government their continued support for the Palestinian genocide is officially antisemitic, see „NIE WIEDER… FÜR WEN?“ on page 60 of the brochure. https://www.verfassungsschutz.de/SharedDocs/publikationen/DE/allgemein/2026-05-antisemitische-codes-und-chiffren.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=9
The writers of the brochure also try really really hard to equate criticism of Israel with anti Jewish racism. That page 60 meme is about Germany and Israel, and their explanation tries to make it about Jews. It’s jarring.
They aren’t writing any of that, they explainer box below says
Einordnung: Im Gegensatz zu den anderen Beispielen in dieser Broschüre ist im vorliegenden Fall der Interpretationsspielraum, ob oder inwiefern hier antisemitischer Gehalt vorhanden ist, deutlich größer. Die folgende Analyse zeigt, dass dieses Fallbeispiel aufgrund seiner Bildsprache sowohl als legitime Kritik als auch als antisemitisch verstanden werden kann.
Translation:
Context: Unlike the other examples in this brochure, in this case there is significantly more room for interpretation regarding whether or to what extent anti-Semitic content is present. The following analysis shows that, due to its visual language, this case study can be interpreted as both legitimate criticism and as anti-Semitic.
Also, don’t equate the German government to its intelligence service, it’s more complicated than that.
And some other excerpts:
Demonization: The portrayal of Israel as a criminal collective directly connects to the antisemitic interpretation of the accusation of systematic child murder.The image portrays violence against “the Jews” as just “resistance” and a necessary reaction to a supposedly absolute injustice.
There are anti genocide symbols? I just knew a few anti fasc ones
Germany never changed
Like most places there are good and bad bits to everywhere. I love Germany almost the same way I love California (I got German ancestors but I haven’t lived in Germany, my experience has been a lot of great people, great land and geography, great food, shitty politics)
I’ve lived a lot of places and traveled a bit. It’s hard to hate places and large swaths of people. You have to work at it.
Germany and being on the side of genocide, iconic duo.
It’s not Germany if it’s not fascism & genocide is it?
tl;dr?
