“He himself described his text as a contribution to the debate,” says Elio Adler of de Maizière’s paper. “And for that purpose it is, in my view, outstandingly well suited.” The Berlin dentist founded the WerteInitiative in 2014, a Jewish group whose aim is to strengthen the basic values of a free and democratic order and Germany’s relationship with Israel. Given the large number of refugees from Syria, Adler argues, there also needs to be a discussion aboutwhich values should be conveyed to them as the basis of living together. “We are currently witnessing a loss of inhibition that comes from many directions: from right-wing parties that encourage citizens to act in a racist manner, from left-wing extremists who underpin their hostility towards Jews with conspiracy theories about capital, and from Muslims who seek to act out their religious and cultural prejudices. One hardly knows what to tackle first.” For that reason he welcomes the Leitkultur debate. It is not, he stresses, about “the minimum of what everyone has to do”, “but rather about a kind of compass that points the way”.
CHRISTIAN Adler reports that most of the Jews in his initiative responded very positively to the ten points. “A few took issue with the strong emphasis on Germany’s Christian character – but that is simply how things are in Germany.”
