German politician Erika Steinbach, who is human rights spokesperson for the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, faces criticism after she tweeted a picture with the caption 'Germany 2030' that depicts a crowd of dark-skinned people curiously asking a single white child where she is from.
— Erika Steinbach (@SteinbachErika) 27 февраля 2016 г.
The picture has the captions 'Germany 2030' and 'Where do you come from?'
Steinbach posted the image on Saturday and caused a wave of mostly negative reaction on Twitter.
Die @SteinbachErika hat also Angst vor Indern? Und twittert damit so unverhohlen unintelligent wie immer… schämt die sich für gar nichts?
— Floid (@LeFloid) 27 февраля 2016 г.
'So Erika Steinbach is afraid of Indians? And tweets as blatantly unintelligently as ever… is there nothing she is ashamed of?'
@SteinbachErika Sie haben — wieder einmal — die feine Grenze von Rechtspopulismus zum Rassismus überschritten. Sie tun mir leid!
— Ulrich Kelber (@UlrichKelber) 27 февраля 2016 г.
'You have — once again — crossed the fine line from right-wing populism to racism. I am sorry for you,' tweeted leading SDP politician Ulrich Kelber.
.@SteinbachErika Ihr Bild von Deutschland 2030 gefällt mir deutlich besser als viele Bilder von Deutschland 2015. pic.twitter.com/Nqv8osUZei
— Jochen Breyer (@jochenbreyer) 27 февраля 2016 г.
'I like her picture of Germany in 2030 a lot more than many pictures of Germany in 2015.'
Hallo @SteinbachErika! Wir haben kein Inderproblem, aber ein Araberproblem. Und nicht 2030, sondern heute: pic.twitter.com/T0zcOIaUPb
— Bärendeutscher (@Baerendeutscher) 28 февраля 2016 г.
'Hello, Erika Steinbach! We don't have an Indian problem, but an Arab problem. And not in 2030, but today.'
Steinbach responded to the criticism later that day on Twitter.
Allen Realitätsverweigerern: mehr Menschen in D haben Sorge, dass Einheimische zur Minderheit werden als Sie es für möglich halten❗️
— Erika Steinbach (@SteinbachErika) 27 февраля 2016 г.
'To all those in denial of reality: more people than you think in Germany are worried that the natives will become a minority,' Steinbach wrote.
.@SteinbachErika Danke, dass Sie noch starke Stimme des deutschen Volkes sind!:) Berechtigte Sorge, dass Einheimische zur Minderheit werden!
— Irina L (@balleryna) 28 февраля 2016 г.
'Erika Steinbach, thank you for remaining a strong voice for the German people. Legitimate concerns that the natives will become the minority!'
On Monday the politician spoke to German newspaper Bild and sought to explain her controversial tweet.
"That photo was sent to me by a worried father from Frankfurt, whose children only have two other German classmates. He sent that photo with the letter," Steinbach told Bild.
"It is not an aggressive photo. There are no Arab refugees on it, but friendly Indians who are inquisitive and interested in the child."
Asked whether Germany will really look like that photo in 2030, she replied, "The data indicates so."
"In the big cities a significant proportion of the population is already non-German," Steinbach said.
"For me this raises the question of how Mrs Steinbach can reconcile her racist statements with her position as human rights spokesperson," Green Party leader Anton Hofreiter told the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger (Cologne City Gazette) newspaper.
