Anti-Semitism, again and still

Author reading: Deutsche Lebenslügen
Event textPhilipp Peyman Engel, born in Herdecke in 1983, grew up in the Ruhr area as the son of a Persian Jewish woman and a German father. He studied philosophy, education, literature and media practice in Bochum and Essen. The journalist is editor-in-chief of the weekly newspaper "Jüdische Allgemeine". "Medium Magazin" awarded him the prestigious "Editor-in-Chief of the Year" media prize in 2023. Engel's articles on Jewish life, anti-Semitism and Israel regularly appear in "Der Spiegel", "FAZ" and "Deutschlandfunk".
The brutal terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7 has become a litmus test for political and moral attitudes in Germany. The silence of the left and the jubilation of Muslim immigrants, the support of the Palestinians by climate activist Greta Thunberg, the torn down posters of the abductees in London, the horror of politicians who saw the footage of the perpetrators - October 7 has done away with many certainties. In Germany, anti-Semitism is once again so open that you could be forgiven for thinking it had never gone away. Philipp Peyman Engel is shocked that the outrage in Germany is being expressed so hesitantly - but not surprised.
Philipp Peyman Engel takes to the streets of Neukölln and accompanies Federal President Steinmeier to Israel, he writes about the mendacity of the German debate and tells of his youth as the son of a Persian Jew in North Rhine-Westphalia. On the one hand, his book is a reckoning with those who remain silent about terror and a call to take a stand. On the other hand, it is an unsparing description of this country's moral crisis.