{"id":17078,"date":"2025-04-13T17:32:08","date_gmt":"2025-04-13T17:32:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/17078\/"},"modified":"2025-04-13T17:32:08","modified_gmt":"2025-04-13T17:32:08","slug":"how-germanys-wealth-inequality-led-to-far-right-surge-explained","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/17078\/","title":{"rendered":"How Germany’s wealth inequality led to far-right surge, explained"},"content":{"rendered":"

For decades, postwar Germany thrived on economic success. The Wirtschaftswunder (economic miracle) built a strong welfare state and the Volkswagen Beetle symbolised progress \u2013 a car for every worker. Reunification shattered that balance. East Germany\u2019s economy collapsed, triggering mass emigration and decline. The West failed to adapt, clinging to old industries as the world changed and the internet shifted value away from metal bashing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Beyond the East-West divide, new fractures separate homeowners from renters, secure professionals from the precarious working class. Eighteen million Germans are in poverty<\/a> or at risk of falling into poverty. Education often entrenches disadvantage and healthcare is increasingly stratified by social class. As inequality deepens, so does political discontent. Once a beacon of stability, Germany is growing volatile, evoking the fragmentation of the Weimar era, when economic despair opened the door to the Nazis. A third of the electorate has abandoned mainstream parties.<\/p>\n

Political entrepreneurs on the fringe thrive on the frustration. Nearly half of AfD voters cite inequality as a key grievance. Once viewed as an East German party, the AfD is gaining in the West and among struggling youth, who have become more polarised.<\/p>\n

With a demographic crisis looming, Germany faces stark choices on welfare and spending. If mainstream politicians fail, populists stand ready to capitalise. Germany\u2019s postwar identity is fragile,
and as it cracks, ethnic nationalism lurks. The political crisis won\u2019t end with this election. It may just be starting. Its breakdown would send shockwaves across Europe and beyond. As the continent\u2019s largest economy, Germany should lead on global challenges. <\/p>\n

Yet just as strong leadership is needed, political tribalism is taking hold. Instead of confronting its challenges \u2013 revamping its economic model; restoring opportunity \u2013 the election fixated on immigration, sidelining tougher debates. Keeping out a few thousand refugees won\u2019t improve most German families\u2019 lives.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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<\/a><\/p>\n

Although the political class struggles for solutions, civil society is mobilising. Anti-poverty activists dismantle the myth that the system works for all, while grassroots groups help people fight benefit cuts, access medical care and keep their heating on. Germany needs to tap into this energy, fostering a sense of community that breaches social, economic and religious lines.<\/p>\n

The challenges remain formidable. Deindustrialisation and the decline of Germany\u2019s once-mighty auto industry will fuel further disillusionment. But resistance endures. Back in Frankfurt, Bergmann keeps handing out supplies to Germany\u2019s forgotten, defying a system that ignores them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are signs that people are growing more sensitive to the fate of others,\u201d she said, pointing to social media efforts around highlighting poverty. \u201cThat is something at least.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Broken Republik: Germany\u2019s Crumbling Promise of Shared Prosperity<\/a> by Chris Reiter & Will Wilkes is\u00a0out now (Bloomsbury, \u00a322). You can buy it from the\u00a0Big Issue shop<\/a>\u00a0on bookshop.org, which helps to support Big Issue and independent bookshops.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this?\u00a0Get in touch and tell us more<\/a>.\u00a0Big Issue exists to give homeless and marginalised people the opportunity to earn an income.\u00a0To support our work buy a copy of the magazine<\/a>\u00a0or get the app from the\u00a0App Store<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0Google Play<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For decades, postwar Germany thrived on economic success. The Wirtschaftswunder (economic miracle) built a strong welfare state and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":17079,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5310],"tags":[3444,2000,299,7056,1824,6333,11524,11525,285],"class_list":{"0":"post-17078","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-germany","8":"tag-books","9":"tag-eu","10":"tag-europe","11":"tag-from-the-magazine","12":"tag-germany","13":"tag-housing","14":"tag-inequality","15":"tag-learning-and-employment","16":"tag-politics"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114331854291265113","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17078","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17078"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17078\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17079"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}