Claudia Roth: Jewish students demand an apology

A podcast appearance by Claudia Roth on Tilo Jung met with sharp criticism among Jews in Germany. The statements of the former Minister of State for Culture are shocking, said Ron Dekel, chairman of the Jewish Student Union (JSUD). »After the documenta, she was declared a major anti-Semite. At the time I thought that you couldn't rely on them in the fight against anti-Semitism, but that wasn't entirely true either. After watching the video, I'm just speechless," the Germany editorial network quoted Dekel as saying.

»Ms Roth demands that we free ourselves from German guilt at a time when anti-Semitism is at an all-time high in German society. “I demand that Ms. Roth apologize publicly and distance herself from these statements,” Dekel continued, according to RND. He also added on Instagram: "He didn't expect that from you, Ms. Roth, as a supposed left-wing politician." “That’s AfD speak,” he said.

The Green politician sharply rejected the idea that she was putting Germany's historical responsibility into perspective. “The allegations against me are absolutely unacceptable,” Roth told Stern. In the podcast she reported that friends had asked her when she would finally free herself from "this guilt of history" or deal with it differently. And: Back then, in 2024, she couldn't do this. Roth told “Stern” that she “did not adopt” her friends’ statements, but merely quoted them.

“Ancient anti-Semitic conspiracy stories”

“Coming to terms with the crimes of German history and the ongoing responsibility that arises from them have been one of my most important concerns throughout my political life,” Roth said, according to the magazine. It will remain that way, said Roth, who came under sharp criticism in 2022 as the then Minister of State for Culture because of her initial handling of anti-Semitic motifs at the Documenta in Kassel.

Dekel, on the other hand, said in an interview with the "Jüdische Allgemeine" that he found it crass "that she indirectly, through her foreign friends, suggests that one must free oneself from 'German guilt' in order to be able to openly criticize Israel." When it comes to Israel-related anti-Semitism, Roth has a blank spot.

The statements about guilt are not the only part of the podcast that causes a stir. Roth also publicly regretted earlier statements in a SPIEGEL interview in which she criticized incidents at the Berlinale awards ceremony. She said her comments about the war in Gaza at the time were a mistake. She was under “unbelievable pressure from the Central Council”.

According to “Stern,” those close to the Central Council of Jews now said that Roth “seems to be happy with any means in the fight against political insignificance.” Student representative Dekel told the “Jüdische Allgemeine”: “She whispers about the supposed power of the Central Council of Jews over German politics. This serves age-old anti-Semitic conspiracy stories. That makes me wonder whether she might have anti-Semitic sentiments herself.”