The German publisher Ravensburger took the new Winnetou books off the shelves because they were accused of racism and spreading stereotypes on social media. However, this new victory of the erasure culture has blown the fuse for many people.
Like bison from the prairie, Winnetou books are disappearing from the shelves of German bookstores: two new books about him have been withdrawn by the publisher Ravensburger because they were accused of spreading racist stereotypes on social media.
The Karl May books about the Apache hero, who have been popular for many generations, were to be released as a spin-off of the new German family western film Little Winnetou (Der junge Häuptling Winnetou). Ravensburger apologized by saying that it never meant to hurt anyone's feelings and that offending cultural sensitivities is incompatible with its values.
Not everyone in Germany agrees with this explanation and with the withdrawal of the books in general, wrote the British The Times, which begins its article by saying that
in the last 150 years, neither the kayos, nor the Haramias, nor the censors of two totalitarian regimes could finish off the big-hearted Apache chief - however, the identity politics of the 21st century seem to be succeeding.
The German Bild, which also leans to the right, commented: Thanks to the censor buddies, our childhood hero is being burned at the stake.
Even the vice-president of the liberal Free Democrats, Wolfgang Kubicki, did not like the publisher's decision, who reacted as follows:
If we make concessions every time someone is culturally offended by dreadlocks or harmless children's stories, then beyond a point we just have to keep making concessions.
The news of the publisher's decision stormed through the entire German media, stirring up a huge debate. Politicians also spoke, such as the former Social Democratic Vice-Chancellor and Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel.
Als Kind habe ich Karl Mays Bücher geliebt, besonders #Winnetou . Als mein Held starb, flossen Tränen. Zum Rassisten hat mich das ebenso wenig gemacht wie Tom Sawyer&Huckelberry Finn. Und deshalb bleibt Winnetou im Bücherregal für meine Kinder. Und den Film schauen wir uns auch an.
— Sigmar Gabriel (@sigmargabriel) August 23, 2022
In her Twitter post, she recalled that as a child she loved the Karl May books, especially Winnetout, and that when the main character died, she shed tears. The book did not make him a racist, nor did The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.
That is why Winnetou remains on my children's bookshelf. And let's see the movie, he added.
Karl May, the author of the Indian books, never visited America. Do we know what the name Winnetou means? That's all it does: burning water.
Source: vg.
Featured image: GettyImages
