Polemic on racism: German farewell culture

She was still a small child when her parents fled the civil war in Afghanistan in the 1990s. The family came to Germany ; there was no room in kindergarten, so she went to school. Don't stand out, prefer to be mediocre. That was Waslat Hasrat-Nazimi's credo. From an early age she was insulted as the other, the foreigner. And despite the discrimination, although she was consciously and unconsciously excluded, she persevered. She went to grammar school, even without a recommendation from elementary school. She studied, even though one of her teachers didn't think she was capable of it. She became head of the Afghanistan department at Deutsche Welle. She is now privileged, as she herself admits.

But she still lives with the feeling of not being wanted here, of having to constantly fight for many things that are completely normal for Germans without a migration background, or of not being able to achieve them at all.

In her first book, Hasrat-Nazimi, born in 1988, describes her rapprochement with her native Afghanistan in a captivating blend of personal experiences and analysis. For many years, she wanted nothing to do with it so as not to jeopardize the process of becoming German and adapting. Without pathos, without sugarcoating. This made it particularly stand out from the books published after the Taliban's return to power in Kabul in 2021.

Now Hasrat-Nazimi has published a new book, again combining extensive conversations with her own reflections. But this time, the author explores less. The title already suggests this: "Escaped Countries. Our Bags Are Packed. The Catastrophic Consequences of Racism, Exclusion, and Discrimination." The message comes right from the cover and is stated early on: "In recent months, I've increasingly feared that I'll have to flee once again in my life due to threats and persecution."

Emigrating from Germany—is the situation really so catastrophic? Yes, says Hasrat-Nazimi: "For those not affected, these considerations may sound shocking, perhaps even exaggerated, overdramatic."

The book is deliberately one-sided. It deals with individual, institutional, and structural racism in Germany. It addresses terms like remigration and foreign infiltration —the AfD has introduced these into society, and the media, Hasrat-Nazimi believes, also adopts such terms too uncritically. She takes the perspective of people with a migration background. She asks many migrants what caused their alienation.

It's about the people who are searched in the supermarket if they haven't bought anything because they don't look like native Germans and are accused of theft. Who are particularly frequently stopped by the police because of their skin color and origins. Who have already taken the step abroad . Who, while still living here, are too often expected to provide answers for other migrants. "How do people feel when they regularly hear or read in the news how they are equated with violent criminals just because they happen to share the same origins?" asks the author. Marginalized, degraded. Germany can't really afford to treat migrants this way because of the shortage of skilled workers , writes Hasrat-Nazimi. That's true, and large passages make for unpleasant, timely, and important reading.

But the book also lacks elements: The attacks in Aschaffenburg, Magdeburg, and Munich are only mentioned in passing. Why has the feeling that Germany has taken in too many migrants grown not only among the growing number of AfD supporters, but also in other political camps? What moderate voices are there, for example, within the CDU, that seek a migration policy that unifies society beyond pasha populism , without being driven by the AfD and without being defamed by the left as being driven by the AfD? Or do they no longer exist at all? The author's reflections on this would be interesting.

"Is migration truly the central issue of our time, or is it not rather about the need to redistribute resources?" Hasrat-Nazimi asks at the end of the addendum to the 2025 federal election. She proposes what needs to change and advocates for a targeted amendment to the Basic Law to combat discrimination and racism more effectively. She calls for more concrete school programs, a reform of anti-discrimination law, and also considers in detail a ban on the AfD.

The book does not offer a conciliation concept for a polarized society. Germany in 2025: The number of voters is growing, welcomed by the AfD with open arms and populist slogans, and whom the Merz-CDU hopes to bring back into focus. On the other side are Germans with a migration background who feel their existence is threatened by defamatory rhetoric and deliberate exclusion. The author's conclusion: German society has marginalized many migrants, not even considering how to integrate guest workers . And today, it is making new, fatal mistakes.