Trump and His ‘Mein Kampf’

Coming from economic strength, today’s Germany does whatever it can to prevent episodes of hatred.

“The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.” ― Albert Einstein

When Donald Trump announced his candidacy to go after the presidency of the United States, we thought it would be just another one of his ideas. In addition to being a notable businessman, he is a public figure who has his own reality shows and who has appeared at the Emmy awards singing in overalls and a straw hat. He is a multimillionaire clown, one who never provoked anything more than a laugh (a forced one for some, one of cringing embarrassment for others). But then came the statements against Mexican immigrants, and suddenly, his presidential hopes stopped being a hobby and inexplicably became a growing force. Poll numbers had him gaining on his Republican rivals and even Hillary Clinton. A couple of days ago, the polling company SurveyUSA published that according to its studies, the votes were 45 percent for Donald Trump and 40 percent for Hillary Clinton. Ouch. What we thought was an absurd idea is now a real possibility for the multimillionaire.

On various occasions, Donald Trump has had the opportunity to correct this discourse that has clearly become a rally of hatred. However, the expressions he has used against Mexican immigrants changed from being charged with a simplistic racism to being charged with a racism that feeds the paranoia already present in parts of the country, especially Southern border states. This paranoia has led to the appearance of citizen groups who “hunt” undocumented immigrants. It seems impossible that in 2015, with so many years of terrible collective history associated with discourses of hate — but particularly in the first half of the 20th century — that there is still room in the world for a discourse that incites racism, that incites the idiotic idea of supremacy, for this is what Trump expresses. Either way, although the reference will always be controversial — this is how, this is just how Adolf Hitler’s rise to power began, starting with an outrageous racial position, which turned into persecution and later into a war, that still has open wounds that have not been closed.

Trump’s thinking is nothing more than a regression in social and migratory politics that, with a lot of work, have been moving forward in our neighboring country — pyrrhic victories, but without a doubt, they have meant a step toward peace for the millions of immigrants who live in the United States and who mean so much to the economy and workforce, not to mention what that currency means to their home countries. It’s curious how time has moved forward, but Trump has perverted the American people’s sense of nationalism: nationalist rallies that are today inadmissible in the West since Hitler destroyed it so. In contrast, in today’s Germany, we read that the vice chancellor, Sigmar Gabriel, has announced that they will receive half a million refugees; and Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that they will invest millions of euros in the centers that will receive them.

They have also called on the rest of the European community to receive the thousands of Syrian citizens who are looking for a new home. The migratory crisis seemed to be out of control, but the European Union is ready to face it. Other countries, like Chile and Brazil, have offered to receive them as well. Let’s hope that Mexico (always with our arms open) also makes the announcement soon.

And what a difference, what a huge difference from Trump’s rhetoric this is; he is no longer only speaking about how he views the Mexican people but now also about what policies he would enact if elected president: massive deportations, building a new wall on the border, etc.

Coming from economic strength, today’s Germany does whatever it can to prevent (not repeat) episodes of hatred that took a high toll historically. Donald Trump does whatever he can to nurture his ridiculous rhetoric, which seems to be taking hold in the minds of voters today. It’s as if the past has taught us absolutely nothing, which is not only sad but incredibly dangerous.