Is the former ARD sports presenter Waldemar Hartmann a racist? At least that was the accusation against the 78-year-old, who had previously spoken to X with a statement about the Berlin left-wing politician Elif Eralp.
In it he initially criticized the political ideas of the Berlin Left and accused the party of being “dependent on criminal clans and Islamist terrorist organizations”. He then wrote: “I simply have a problem with the fact that the governing mayor of the German capital Berlin is called Elif Eralp.” Politicians from the CDU, Greens and Left Party then accused Hartmann of racism.
The CDU politician Serap Güler, Minister of State in the Foreign Office, reacted particularly clearly. One could “strongly criticize” Eralp and her party. However, Hartmann's statement was "no ifs and buts about pure racism," she explained.
Waldemar Hartmann himself commented on his posting again on Monday when asked by the “Bild” newspaper. According to Hartmann, the accusations of racism affected him deeply: "I am now 78 years old, no one can even begin to accuse me of anything that has to do with racism. I was not a racist, I am not one and I will not become one." The 78-year-old continued that he only wanted to criticize the Berlin left, whose politics he considers “ludicrous”.
Despite massive headwinds from all over Germany, a red-green-red alliance led by the Left Party is moving closer in Berlin. With its top candidate Elif Eralp, the Left wants to appoint a governing mayor in the capital for the first time. The lawyer came under criticism because of her membership in the Red Aid, which the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution attributes to left-wing extremism, until 2025.
Further allegations relate to contacts between the Berlin Left in the clan milieu and to a meeting between Eralp and a delegation that is said to have included members of a group classified by the security authorities as a PKK front organization; Eralp stated that he knew nothing about it.
On the evening of the election, clan boss Issa Remmo and terror supporter Ibrahim Ibrahim, among others, attended their celebration, while there was a dispute within the party about how to deal with Israel and pro-Palestinian milieus. Most recently, an internal note that was accidentally sent caused a stir, which revealed that Eralp wanted to avoid making a clear public statement about Ibrahim Ibrahim out of concern for her family.
On X, in addition to Güler, numerous other politicians were outraged by Hartmann's statement.
Among them was the CDU politician Dennis Radtke, federal chairman of the Christian Democratic Workers' Association (CDA). “Anyone who puts name and origin on the same level as content and actions is simply a commercial racist,” he wrote.
Hartmann also addressed the CDU politician's statement in his statement to “Bild”. The fact that the Left and the Greens are now “swinging the club of racism is something I can live with. They are swinging it against anyone who speaks plainly,” the newspaper quotes the sports journalists as saying. But the fact that CDU politicians also accuse him of racism, “instead of asking themselves why a woman was able to win Eralp, is hypocrisy and subterranean.”
Criticism also came from the former Left chairwoman Janine Wissler. She particularly objected to Hartmann's reference to Eralp's name and the origins of her parents.
The Green Party politician Ricarda Lang was also critical. She wrote on X: “You’re not supposed to say the quiet part out loud.” The English expression “to say the quiet part out loud” means to say openly what normally remains unspoken. It is usually used when someone is unusually blunt about their actual motives or intentions.
Sigmount Königsberg, anti-Semitism commissioner for the Jewish Community in Berlin, also joined the debate. Despite all possible political criticism of the Berlin Left, he called for solidarity with Eralp: “Not like that,” he explained.
Königsberg referred to one of the most famous outbursts in German television history: “Völler is right,” he wrote, recalling the legendary appearance of the then DFB team boss Rudi Völler in 2003.
After the German national team drew 0-0 against Iceland, Völler argued with Hartmann live on television. “I can’t hear this cheese anymore,” said Völler, accusing Hartmann of sitting comfortably in his chair and drinking “three wheat beers.”
Hartmann, who worked as a sports journalist and presenter for ARD for decades, was best known for his football reporting. He has been working for the “Nius” portal since August 2023.
