Bluntness and bitterness have long been elements of integration debates in Germany. But emotion often obscures an important question: Why do many ethnic groups integrate well into German society while others do not? It took a while, but by last Thursday the controversy had finally reached a cafe on Hobrechtstrasse in Berlin's Neukölln neighborhood, a place frequented by fans of the Turkish football club FC Phönix 56 Ayyildiz. A group of men with little else to do -- because they are either retired or unemployed -- usually meets there in the afternoon. The men sit in the sparsely furnished room under a ceiling fan, drinking tea from elegantly curved glasses and discussing politics over the electronic blubber of video games coming from the back room. Servet Kulaksiz starts the conversation on Thursday. A 50-year-old early retiree, he taps his finger against a photo of Thilo Sarrazin on the cover of the Turkish daily newspaper Sabah and launches into a tirade. "The man is right. Many foreigners don't even want to become integrated here. They collect their unemployment payments, but aside from that, they do nothing."
Bluntness and bitterness have long been elements of integration debates in Germany. But emotion often obscures an important question: Why do many ethnic groups integrate well into German society while others do not?
It took a while, but by last Thursday the controversy had finally reached a cafe on Hobrechtstrasse in Berlin's Neukölln neighborhood, a place frequented by fans of the Turkish football club FC Phönix 56 Ayyildiz. A group of men with little else to do -- because they are either retired or unemployed -- usually meets there in the afternoon. The men sit in the sparsely furnished room under a ceiling fan, drinking tea from elegantly curved glasses and discussing politics over the electronic blubber of video games coming from the back room.
Servet Kulaksiz starts the conversation on Thursday. A 50-year-old early retiree, he taps his finger against a photo of Thilo Sarrazin on the cover of the Turkish daily newspaper Sabah and launches into a tirade. "The man is right. Many foreigners don't even want to become integrated here. They collect their unemployment payments, but aside from that, they do nothing."
Many would argue that the integration of immigrants in Europe has been a failure. Dutch sociologist Paul Scheffer, 55, spoke with SPIEGEL about cultural reciprocity, the need for self-criticism and why tolerance cannot be based on fear. SPIEGEL: Mr. Scheffer, immigrants are widely seen as a problem in Europe today. Or can you name a country that is dealing successfully with immigration? Scheffer: In the past few years, I have visited the areas where most of the immigrants live, cities like Lyon, Rotterdam, Berlin, Birmingham and Malmö. I see the same social problems everywhere: segregation, high unemployment, cultural alienation.
Many would argue that the integration of immigrants in Europe has been a failure. Dutch sociologist Paul Scheffer, 55, spoke with SPIEGEL about cultural reciprocity, the need for self-criticism and why tolerance cannot be based on fear.
SPIEGEL: Mr. Scheffer, immigrants are widely seen as a problem in Europe today. Or can you name a country that is dealing successfully with immigration?
Scheffer: In the past few years, I have visited the areas where most of the immigrants live, cities like Lyon, Rotterdam, Berlin, Birmingham and Malmö. I see the same social problems everywhere: segregation, high unemployment, cultural alienation.
The Bundesbank has sanctioned its controversial board member Thilo Sarrazin over disparaging remarks he made about immigrants in a recent magazine interview. German commentators are split about the wisdom of the decision but welcome the new impetetus Sarrazin has inadvertently given to the integration debate. The German central bank, the Bundesbank, may not have been able to fire outspoken board member Thilo Sarrazin, but it managed nonetheless to punish him for controversial remarks he made about immigrants in a recent interview. On Tuesday, the Bundesbank stripped Sarrazin of some of his key responsibilities in what amounted to a public humiliation. He will no longer be in charge of cash management, but gets to retain responsibility for risk control and information technology. Politicians from the center-right Christian Democrats and the center-left Social Democrats have criticized the decision. Otto Bernhardt, the CDU's financial expert, told the Wednesday edition of the mass circulation Bild newspaper that the move was "not transparent and not justifiable because (Sarrazin) was stripped of responsibilities that had nothing to do with his statements." "You can certainly discuss (Sarrazin's) statements," said Peter Danckert, a Bundestag member for the SPD. "But stripping him of his responsibilities, as the Bundesbank has now done, is not the right sanction."
The Bundesbank has sanctioned its controversial board member Thilo Sarrazin over disparaging remarks he made about immigrants in a recent magazine interview. German commentators are split about the wisdom of the decision but welcome the new impetetus Sarrazin has inadvertently given to the integration debate.
The German central bank, the Bundesbank, may not have been able to fire outspoken board member Thilo Sarrazin, but it managed nonetheless to punish him for controversial remarks he made about immigrants in a recent interview. On Tuesday, the Bundesbank stripped Sarrazin of some of his key responsibilities in what amounted to a public humiliation. He will no longer be in charge of cash management, but gets to retain responsibility for risk control and information technology.
Politicians from the center-right Christian Democrats and the center-left Social Democrats have criticized the decision. Otto Bernhardt, the CDU's financial expert, told the Wednesday edition of the mass circulation Bild newspaper that the move was "not transparent and not justifiable because (Sarrazin) was stripped of responsibilities that had nothing to do with his statements."
"You can certainly discuss (Sarrazin's) statements," said Peter Danckert, a Bundestag member for the SPD. "But stripping him of his responsibilities, as the Bundesbank has now done, is not the right sanction."
