Deutsche Welle, December 11, 2018

Germany’s right-wing populists said they sought to celebrate the contributions of white men, who faced “rampant discrimination” in society. The calendar was promoted with the hashtag “yes to white men” on Twitter.

The AfD of the Berlin parliament drew criticism for a new Christmas campaign honoring notable white men every day in the month of December, in the tradition of the Advent calendar. The far-right populists announced their controversial move with a message on Twitter, using the hashtag “yes to white men” (#JaZuWeißenMännern).

“At the most beautiful time of the year, every day we introduce you to a person who has significantly influenced our Western civilization. ‘White men’ have become an insult to some in recent years. Not to us.”

The calendar features famous German men such as playwright and poet Berthold Brecht and Martin Luther, a key figure in the Protestant reformation. But it also featured international figures such as US President Ronald Reagan and the late Pope John Paul II.

In the short YouTube video, a member of the AfD at the Berlin House of Representatives wishes the viewer a “white Christmas” and introduces the white man of the day, adding a short sentence describing his contribution.

Discrimination against white men

Georg Pazderski, head of the AfD in Berlin’s parliament, explained that the initiative was a reaction to discrimination targeting white men, which has been a result of “a gender campaign that has long gone off the rails.”

Pasderski claimed that white men now face disadvantages in finding jobs and face public stigma, as a result of “rampant discrimination from the Greens and the Left.”

All of the 22 AfD parliamentarians in Berlin’s city-state legislature are white, two are female.