THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
The Association of Black People in Germany (Initiative Schwarze Menschen in Deutschland or ISD Bund e.V.) has condemned Jens Maier, a member of the far-right, anti-immigrant party Alternative for Germany (AfD), for his racist Twitter comment on Noah Becker (23), son of former tennis star Boris Becker.
The member of the Bundestag or German parliament had attacked Noah Becker, calling him a “little half-negro” on Twitter, over an interview in which the son of the former Wimbledon champion complained about being seen as the “eternal son” of his famous father. Noah’s mother has a German mum and an African-American father.
Lawyers to the Becker family have announced that they would take legal action against Maier, a former judge.
In a press statement titled, “Racism lasts eternally!” the ISD welcomed the decision of the Becker family to take legal action against the verbal racist attack of the AfD politician, who represents Dresden in the federal parliament.
“Right at the beginning of the new year, the party members continue to show their true racist face,” the organisation noted.
“For several years, AfD party members have been attempting to make racist and anti-Semitic language socially acceptable through provocations and insults. The racist derailment of Jens Maier fits seamlessly with the statements made by Höcke, Storch and Weidel. We strongly condemn this behaviour and demand resolute action against racist statements from the AfD spectrum,” the ISD said.
The Black organisation dismissed the attempt by Maier to evade responsibility for the racist Twitter comment by blaming it on an employee and pointed out that the incident again offers a deep insight into the soul of the neo-Nazi party. “It is already well known that people who support racist insults and propagate right-wing nationalist ideas of a homogeneous, White German society have found their political home within the AfD”.
The ISD demanded that the media and politicians resolutely oppose these racist notions and defend the concept of a diverse society.
“Furthermore, we call upon the media to establish a more reflective approach to language, which takes into account that the constant reproduction of racist utterances plays into the hands of racists and violates people who are negatively affected. We encourage them not to fall into the language of the AfD and thereby make exclusion and nationalistic ideas socially acceptable again. Language creates society! Only in this way can we work together against the right-wing, racist and anti-Semitic hate speech of the AfD.”
Jens Maier’s racist tweet commented on an interview with Noah Becker published by emotion, a monthly women’s magazine. In it, the Berlin-based artist and musician had compared Berlin with London and Paris in its multiculturalism. The comment has since been deleted and the AfD politician had via Twitter announced that he had not written it himself; one of his employees was the author, whom he had warned.
According to media reports, Maier has expressed his regret over the issue and would like to apologise to Noah Becker for it.
Femi Awoniyi
READ ALSO Boris Becker’s son to sue AfD politician over racist Tweet
