Multiple Strangers
Today's Germany is such a unique place to live. Just over sixty years old, the country possesses many histories. Still retaining the so-called blood right to citizenship, the state struggles as most modern societies with an influx of immigrants.
Geographically, its central location at the heart of Europe has meant that the region has always been ideally situated many routes north, south, east and west. The industrial revolution brought intense movement from the east whilst, in more recent years, the flow of migration has originated in Italy, former Yugoslavia and Turkey.
Labelling these folk as guest workers endorsed the impression that they would one day return to their home countries. Two and three generations later, the major topic of immigration remains firmly on the agenda.
The fact that millions originate from cultures so vastly different creates anxieties with some and friction with others. But, extreme right wing or radical activities are, contrary to impressions formed through media exposure, proportionately very rare. Germans and Germany are welcoming not only to the well educated or well situated. And the proportion of refugees permitted to remain here is high by international standards.
Yet tension is still created through verbal distance and separation with offspring of immigrant or migrant families referred to as having a migration background. Furthermore, discussion on the topic of foreigners in German society hinges on the use of the word tolerance as opposed to acceptance. And, since Germans love to discuss on a highly emotional, sometimes aggressive level, the debate on what being German is, is far from over.