CHANGING GERMAN NATIONALISM Engin Erkiner
Türkçe
English
Deutsch
Italiano
Français
Ελληνικά
Kurdî
Español
CHANGING GERMAN NATIONALISM Engin Erkiner Some 40 years ago it was very difficult to become a German citizen. For several generations, German If you did not come from a German-speaking background, it would be meaningless if you fulfilled the requirements of the Citizenship Act. For example, you had to show that you knew sufficient German. There was a difficult German test and very few people passed it. According to the Christian Democrats, a person must first be able to integrate at an advanced level. was necessary. This was possible by adopting German culture, also known as ‘Leitkultur’. About 30 years ago, this understanding began to change and the requirement of origin for citizenship was abandoned. There were still restrictions, for example, you could not become a dual citizen. You had to get permission for that. With the law that came into force last month, the restriction on dual citizenship was lifted and all parties approved of it. German nationalism has approached the approach that has been practised in the USA for years. The important thing is it's not one's origin, it's the fact that one thinks of oneself as German. The 21st century is a time of people mixing. The main thing is the mixing of peoples. The country that prevents this is left behind. The most mixed people in the world are the Americans. It is not clear who came from where. The important thing is to see yourself as a US citizen and to work for this country. Looking at one's origins and searching for a pure people is backwardness. Germany is rapidly moving in this direction. The captain of the national team in the last championship was a German of Turkish origin. is an indicator. What is important here is not only that the person is a good footballer, but also that he or she sees himself or herself as German. Some 30 years ago there were many people who did not recognise such people as Germans, even if they had German citizenship. Now they still exist, but their number has decreased. It is not important that he plays for Germany, that he plays well or that his name is Turkish. Those who do not understand this understanding of nationalism, which was introduced late in countries like Germany, are left behind. For the German nationalist, it is essential that talented people from other nations are brought to this country and that they see themselves as Germans. The USA has been doing this for years, and there are two misunderstandings here. The first is to think that these people are still Turks. For example, the couple who invented a variant of the corona vaccine - even if their names are Turkish - are not Turkish, but German. To see their success as the success of Turks is not to understand the changing understanding of nationalism. Even the German courts have recognised this change, and the far-right AfD party They refused to discriminate between Germans - old and new Germans. Secondly, confusion is strength, purity is backwardness. The important thing is to attract talented people from whatever people. The Ottoman Empire did this well. If you look at their origins, even if their names were Turkish, the grand viziers were mostly devshirma. What does it matter? To be able to absorb talented people from other peoples, to assimilate them to the extent that they forget their origins, is not a sign of weakness but of strength. Forcibly taking well-built boys, especially in the Balkan countries, from their families, converting them to Islam and educating them, assigning the talented ones to the palace service - some of them would later become grand viziers - and assigning the rest to the Janissaries, the striking force of the Ottoman army... It was these elements that ensured the strong army and state mechanism of the Ottoman Empire for centuries. There was a clear distinction between German and Turkish nationalism, but it has disappeared one might say. German nationalism was exclusionary. One could not be German if one did not have German roots for three generations. Turkish nationalism, on the other hand, is inclusive. The important thing is that the person sees himself/herself as a Turk. If he/she is also Muslim and speaks Turkish, the rest is not important. Under the new German citizenship law, the period of legal residence in Germany is reduced to five years. additional conditions were imposed. These include the acceptance of equality between men and women and the recognition of Israel's right to exist as a state. The German test was simplified for the first generation of migrant workers who arrived in the 1960s. This law will not end the problem of exclusion, as in France and the USA. Black people in the USA have been US citizens for centuries. The young people rioting in the French suburbs were born in this country and are French citizens. citizens, but they wanted to be treated equally. It remains to be seen how a similar situation will develop in Germany. People who don't have German names, but who are German... Confusion is essential, purity is weakness.
