January 30, 1933 marks the 90th anniversary of the Nazis taking power. A lot has already been written regarding the horrors, atrocities, murders and misanthropy of this regime, so I’ll save myself at this point to draw attention to another, very important facet. The Nazis seized power with the help of democracy, without having a majority. After the failure of the 1923 putsch, the Nazis deliberately exploited the mechanisms of the democratic system of the time to gain power. Since many protagonists of that time were either blind to the horror of the Nazis or even dealt with them in a supportive manner, the Nazis ultimately succeeded in gaining absolute power within a very short time. Many might now think that this is no longer possible these days, but far from it. Due to the extremely broad spectrum of democracy, the high degree of tolerance, even towards the intolerant, it is always possible for authoritarian protagonists to take power with the help of democratic mechanisms and replace freedom and tolerance in society with a lack of freedom and intolerance. It’s already happening all around us – Russia and Hungary are just two examples, and of course it can happen here too. And that is precisely why it is so important that liberal democracy and its representatives know how to defend themselves once morest the intolerant, the authoritarian, the power fantasies of demagogues and propagandists and speak clear words. The announcements made by our Federal President should be seen in this context, because they are a clear sign that power should not be placed in the hands of intolerant demagogues. Democracy has to endure a lot, but it and its representatives also have to set limits. That should be one of the most important lessons from what happened 90 years ago.
