Mayor uninvites German-Jewish author to event

DW (English)

A small village in Germany is at the center of a dispute involving German-Jewish author Michel Friedman. The journalist, who used to work for DW, was invited to appear at a literary event. But the mayor canceled his appearance citing fear of right-wing protests. His decision has sparked a debate over free speech.

Transcript

00:00Klötz, a sleepy northern German village of 3,000 inhabitants,

00:05but also now the center of a row over abuse of political power and the freedom of expression.

00:12Around 500 people showed up to a rally this week called by PEN,

00:16a group promoting literary free speech.

00:20Among the speakers, the man whose treatment by local authorities sparked the row.

00:27Jewish publisher and author Michel Friedman.

00:31So what happened?

00:33It all began when Friedman was invited to address a literary event next year

00:38to mark the 120th birthday of the Jewish political theorist Hannah Arendt.

00:44Then, all of a sudden, Friedman got a call from the event's director, revoking his invitation.

00:51The director said the decision was down to the town's mayor,

00:55who feared disruption by right-wing agitators if Friedman attended.

01:01The first thing that crossed my mind was, why is it a politician, a mayor,

01:08getting involved in the programming of a cultural literary center?

01:12I thought those days were over.

01:19Klötz's mayor Jürgen Mevius contradicted the event director, instead citing local finances

01:25and saying Friedman's fee was too high.

01:29But across Germany and among the protesters here in Klötz,

01:33many feel that this invitation was not just a blunder, but an attack on democratic principles.

01:42This really is about a very central issue, namely the freedom of politicians to dictate to an art institution

01:49who they should invite or exclude.

01:52That's not acceptable. It's unconstitutional.

01:56Many in the crowd carried signs reading Klötz as cosmopolitan and for democracy, values they want the town to defend.

02:05Even after this event, I remain convinced that regardless of who is to blame, disinviting someone is completely unacceptable,

02:16that we really must stand up for freedom of expression.

02:21I'm here because I'm interested in democratic processes.

02:26Klötz's mayor has since stepped down, admitting that the whole affair had sent out mixed messages.

02:33For Michel Friedman himself, the message is clear.

02:38One always thinks that it is only the others who are affected.

02:42No, the moment civil liberties are restricted, everyone is affected.

02:47And it seems the debate on democracy and free speech in the town and across the country is unlikely to fizzle out soon.

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