After right-wing extremists attacked libraries, the mobile advice against right-wing extremism (MBR) Berlin presented a handout on how to deal with such incidents. Given the current social polarization, the project leader of the MBR called on the libraries to position themselves and to oppose “the culture war from the right” with a clear stance, as Bianca Klose said on Monday when the brochure was presented in the Berlin State Library. Since the start of its work in 2017, the MBR has received a total of 100 inquiries from libraries in Berlin.
The handout “Is it all just empty words? How to deal with the right-wing culture war in libraries” is 60 pages long and gives libraries practical tips: for example, how to create a democratic model, for dealing with hostilities or on how to keep events trouble-free.
The senator for anti-discrimination Cansel Kiziltepe (SPD) emphasized that right-wing extremist ideas are not only taking up more and more space on the Internet. “Also in libraries, schools and cultural institutions right-wing extremists try to spread their ideologies and misanthropic ideas and more and more often they get support and applause for it.” Kiziltepe once witnessed such a right-wing attack.
The head of the Tempelhof-Schoeneberg City Library, Dr. Boryano Rickum. Among other things Books have been cut up dealing with right-wing extremism or about left-wing personalities. According to him, the number of incidents has increased over the past two and a half years. The “culture war from the right” has arrived in the middle of society.
According to a statement by the MBR, Bundestag member Renate Künast (Greens), who is also Vice President of the German Library Association, also described libraries as Places of encounter and confrontation with one’s own and other cultures. “Right-wing extremists want to prevent exactly that. We will confidently defend the culture of knowing, learning and making friends.” (dpa)