Claudia Roth Warns AfD's Bauhaus Attacks Echo NSDAP Rhetoric

Claudia Roth, former German Minister of State for Culture, has accused the far-right AfD party of using language reminiscent of the NSDAP in its attacks on the Bauhaus movement. The controversy began when Hans-Thomas Tillschneider, the AfD's cultural policy spokesman in the Magdeburg state parliament, described Bauhaus's cool formal language as having 'raped' the 'human need for comfort.' Roth, who has been a staunch defender of the Bauhaus, expressed shock at these remarks, noting that the AfD employs 'frighteningly similar arguments and formulations' to those used by the NSDAP, which forced the Bauhaus to close in 1933. The Bauhaus sites in Dessau have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996 and attract over 100,000 visitors annually. Roth's comments come amid concerns about the potential impact on the World Heritage status if the AfD were to enter government after the state election in Saxony-Anhalt. The interview was published in the German newspaper 'der Freitag'.