Telekom calls for legal steps against Höcke-statement-Nazi slogans in court

Telekom calls for legal steps against Höcke-statement-Nazi slogans in court

Deutsche Telekom has rejected a statement by the AfD politician Björn Höcke regarding a earlier advertising slogan of the company and examines legal steps. During a TV duel with the CDU politician Mario Voigt, Höcke claimed that Telekom used the sentence "Everything for Germany" a few years ago. Telekom said that this claim was wrong and passed the case on to its lawyers.

The sentence "Everything for Germany" in question is a forbidden solution of the Sturm Department (SA), the paramilitary organization of the NSDAP. Höcke is charged because he is said to have used the slogan in a speech, and will have to answer for the next week before the district court in Halle because of the accusation of using the license plate.

It is not the first time that Telekom is doing against statements by AfD politicians. Last year, the company had already intervened against AfD federal spokeswoman Alice Weidel after spreading similar false claims. Telekom asked Weidel to refrain from these statements.

Höcke, who is a history teacher, defended his choice of words during the TV duel and claimed that he did not know that the sentence used was a SA slogan. He described it as a "common saying". The discussion about the use of historically stressed symbols and slogans by politicians remains up to date and raises questions about sensitivity in dealing with National Socialist symbolism.