The challenge of responding to extreme political views: Germany struggles to address Pegida’s anti-Islam protests

Unlike European countries in times of the financial crisis, Germany’s economic success meant that it largely avoided debates on closing off countries against a “tide of immigrants”, and populism was largely confined to opposition to bailouts in the Eurozone. Pegida’s success is not an indication that right wing extremism in Germany is on the rise, however, it shows that right-wing extremist ideas have entered the conservative mainstream. Large parts of the population remain economically and politically marginalised and there is significant potential for right-wing populism in Germany. The political response to the movement’s success has been inadequate: for fear of alienating voters many are tempted to make Pegida’s demands their own rather than addressing the causes of discontent and disaffection, with the pernicious consequence of legitimising xenophobia.