Manufacturing Consent in Germany
A Syllabus
by Jonas von Lenthe (Wirklichkeits Books)
2020-2024
Manufacturing Consent in Germany is a collection of freely accessible materials that provide a structural understanding of the increasingly repressive climate within the German cultural landscape. Central to this is the nationalized politics of Holocaust remembrance, which has been effectively instrumentalized, as is clear from the various articles, lectures, press releases, and podcasts, by the right-wing in Germany. The extent of this form of disciplining has been particularly palpable in the days since the massacres by Hamas in Israel on October 7, 2023 and the ensuing collective punishment of Gaza by the Israeli army. While the majority of civilian protests against the war crimes of the Israeli army were banned in Germany with the explanation that they were anti-Semitic – a ban that was enforced with frightening police violence –, German institutions largely remained silent about the human rights violations committed in Gaza. The articles linked in the Syllabus are from the last few years and, while addressing anti-democratic tendencies, they are the product of inspiring and transnational discursive spaces that thrive despite them. We want to oppose the German press’ depiction of anti-Semitism as a phenomenon of the Arab-migrant milieu by recognizing that the so-called “denazification” project after 1945 remains unaccomplished; it is the German majority society which is saturated with anti-Semitic continuities. With this compilation we hope to stimulate reflection and promote a discussion on how to oppose this current repression; we believe that opposing it is necessary for the struggle against racist, anti-muslim and anti-Semitic violence and the struggle towards a dignified life for the Palestinian people. Our hearts and thoughts are with all killed, dispossessed, abducted and displaced people and their loved ones. The syllabus was first published on November 5, 2023. It was expanded on April 16, 2024; the new additions are highlighted in gray.