Podiumsdiskussion in Kooperation mit der Süddeutschen Zeitung

Every few years, there is a call for an “uprising of the decent people” – when there are voices spewing anti-immigrant rhetoric; when extreme right-wingers and agitators march for the same causes; when Austria’s right-wing Freedom Party and Germany’s AfD (Alternative for Germany) strive to turn Europe into a fortress and set “the people” against “the elite” – but anti-democratic forces are still gaining ground. In the words of Bertolt Brecht: The womb is still fertile from which this monster crawled. And the belief that a policy of balance and tolerance – at least, in a united, enlightened Europe – is an unshakeable value, a “common good”, begins to waver. Authoritarianism becomes acceptable under the guise of “illiberal democracy”, and contempt for minorities is passed off as a “new order” with “traditional values”. Are the right-wingers taking over the centre – or is the centre shifting towards the right? And why does it seem to be so easy for the enemies of democracy to take advantage of the polycrisis comprising the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the climate crisis and inflation, and abuse it for their propaganda of new fears and old answers?

We want to kick off the 2023/24 season with a matinée where these topics will be discussed. With:

• Michel Friedman, philosopher and author;
• Othmar Karas, First Vice-President of the European Parliament;
• Hedwig Richter, historian and professor of Modern and Contemporary History (University of the German Armed Forces Munich);
• Bartosz T Wieliński, Polish journalist and deputy editor-in-chief of the Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza

Moderation: Cathrin Kahlweit, Süddeutsche Zeitung
Opening words: Martin Kušej

Brought to you by Burgtheater & Süddeutsche Zeitung