How Southeast Asians in Germany suffer abuse with the rise of racism and the far right
- Germany has a reputation for liberalism, but there has been an increase in racist attacks on Muslims and Asians
- Southeast Asian residents of Berlin talk about far-right parties, anti-immigrant sentiment and their thoughts on the future
The town of Stahnsdorf, just outside Berlin, seemed idyllic to Arianna Feldmann when she and her German husband, Werner, arrived in the 1990s. Home to a population of about 15,000, the sleepy area offered the couple an ideal environment in which to raise their daughter and son. Or so they thought.
“When my son was in high school, other children mocked him for the colour of his skin,” recalls Feldmann, who was born in the Philippines and asks to use a false name to conceal her identity.
“One time, they grabbed him by the collar and only released him when one of the kids in the group recognised him and told the others he was German.”
The abuse became a regular occurrence, however, to the point where Feldmann began to collect her son from school at night because she didn’t want him to make the journey alone.
Now, 20 years later, she is more concerned than ever about a resurgence of racism across Germany.
Feldmann says there has been a rise in anti-immigrant sentiment in the country. “I have become worried, especially for my kids,” she says.