Article 4c: The new year’s 2015/2016 public sexual violence debate in Germany: media discourse, gendered anti-Muslim racism and criminal law (Vieten, 2018)

Question 1

The New Year’s Eve 2015/2016’s sexual assault in Germany (Cologne)

Answer 1

This harassment of many women outside of the station in Cologne (Germany) sparked outrage in the media.

Question 2

The media’s coverage of the event

Answer 2

They called in a Taharrush (georganiseerde aanranding van vrouwen) and drew parralells between the incident and the cultural practices in the middle-East. This suggested that sexual violence is a cultural import tied to Middle Eastern and North African men. This framing reflects a broader pattern of oriental narratives and ant-Muslim racism, portraying the ‘oriental male’ as inherently oppressive.

Question 3

Media’s coverage is often based on

Answer 3

• Insufficient evidence
• Exaggerated claims
• Racial stereotypes
• Racist narratives

Question 4

The use of feminist narratives for a xenophobic agenda

Answer 4

Far-right leaders and conservative politicians use these ‘feminist narratives’ (like the Cologne attack) to advance the xenophobic agenda. All of a sudden feeling the need to talk about women’s rights to amplify their racist ideologies and portraying all migrants as sex offenders.

Question 5

The media’s coverage of the victims

Answer 5

While the media mostly focussed on the assault of white, german women. Almost no attention was being paid to the recognition of migrant, muslim and minority women as victims of public and sexual violence. This is often due to:
- More focus on security problems than on racial motives.
- Media bias of what is covered in the media.
- Structural barriers in justice (due to sexist and culturalist stereotypes).
- Underreporting of sexual attacks.