Munich has banned the display of yellow stars at demonstrations against coronavirus-related restrictions. Other cities are expected to follow suit.
The decision in the Bavarian capital follows mounting concern among politicians and Jewish leaders reported in last week’s JC about so-called “hygiene protesters” who claim they are being persecuted like Jews under Hitler for opposing government measures to curb the pandemic. They have been seen wearing yellow stars saying “Not vaccinated.”
A spokesperson for Munich’s police department said that anyone who wears a yellow star at demonstrations now faces a fine. Felix Klein, Germany’s commissioner on antisemitism, called the use of yellow stars and other Holocaust symbolism at demonstrations a “calculated breaking of taboos.”
It is not the first use of such comparisons; Klein noted that in the past year, protesters against a proposed ban on diesel vehicles in Stuttgart wore yellow stars identifying themselves as a “Diesel driver”.
