Karamba Diaby’s announcement he wants to spend time with family comes after bullet and arson attacks on his office

The first African-born MP to enter the German parliament has announced he will not be standing in next year’s federal election, weeks after he revealed the hate mail, including racist slurs and death threats, he and his staff had received.

Karamba Diaby, 62, who entered the Bundestag in 2013 in a moment hailed as historic by equality campaigners, said he wanted to spend more time with his family and to make room for younger politicians.

Diaby said the racist slurs and death threats were “not the main reasons” for his decision, having frequently emphasised he would not be cowed by threats. But they are widely believed they have played a part.

He has increasingly faced racist abuse in recent years. His constituency office in Halle, Saxony Anhalt, has been an arson target, and has had bullets fired through the window. Some staff have faced blackmail attempts to stop them working for him and have been subjected to and threats, Diaby said.

  • @P1r4nha@feddit.deEnglish
    8•5 months ago

    Keeping these friendships going could combat their radicalization, but I’m not faulting you, I also cancelled friendships over this.

    • @nexusband@lemmy.worldEnglish
      12•5 months ago

      I have no issue if political views don’t line up, in fact I welcome discussions and I have been wrong many times on some topics. However, the line has to be drawn somewhere, and that somewhere is openly advocating for racism or other views, that simply cannot stand in a society that aligns with modern “western” views. (Too many individual points that we take for granted these days)

          • @P1r4nha@feddit.deEnglish
            1•5 months ago

            I guess if we can’t deradicalize our own extremists, why do we expect we can deradicalize the immigrants that are islamic extremists.

    • @theangryseal@lemmy.worldEnglish
      4•5 months ago

      If I cancelled all of the friendships I have with radicalized people, I would almost certainly have to isolate my little family completely.

      I do try to talk time back over the line, but I don’t think I have ever succeeded.