Recent remarks by the German Chancellor on migration and the risks faced by women have sparked an intense debate across the country. Many women have begun calling on Friedrich Merz to take concrete action to improve their safety. The issue was reported by DW.com.
Time for Action, Not Words
Hibba Kauser, an SPD councilor from Offenbach, has signed an open letter to Friedrich Merz in which 60 prominent women urge him to turn his concern for “daughters” into concrete measures.
“We want to talk about the safety of daughters – that is, women. But we want to approach this seriously and not use it as a cheap pretext to justify racist narratives. The victims of sexism and the victims of racism must not be pitted against each other,”
the letter reads.
In mid-October, the Chancellor stated in Potsdam that “this problem still exists in the urban landscape.” A few days later, he added: “Why don’t you ask your daughters about it?”
Words Spark a Debate
Following those comments, debates and demonstrations against the Chancellor’s remarks have been taking place across Germany. A new initiative has now emerged under the title “We Are the Daughters – 10 Demands to Friedrich Merz on Our Safety.” The demands include, among others, more effective prosecution of sexual and domestic violence, as well as improved lighting and surveillance in public spaces.
“I signed the petition immediately because I believe it’s crucial that if we’re going to talk about the safety of our daughters, we at least do it properly. Women’s shelters need better funding; no woman should ever be turned away,”
Kauser told DW.
She had already spoken at an earlier demonstration.
“If a woman doesn’t have a German passport or doesn’t speak German well enough, she should not be discriminated against,”
she said in Berlin.
“Anyone who talks to Kauser can see how the discussions of recent weeks have affected people like her. Born in a refugee shelter in Brandenburg, she served for two years on the federal board of the SPD Young Socialists and even received an award in 2024 for outstanding engagement in local politics. She represents a model success story, and yet, amid the controversy over the Chancellor’s comments about the “urban landscape,” she still feels, as DW.com reports, that “it’s not enough.”
“I was shocked, very sad, and deeply hurt. No matter what we do, no matter what we say – whether we graduate here, change the world, or make a positive contribution to this society – we always have to prove two or even three times as hard that we belong here, too. Although this shouldn’t even be a question, because we were born and raised here. But why do people still talk about us this way?”
the 25-year-old asks.
