Museumsinsel President Calls for Democracy Day Amid Threats to Cultural Institutions

Marion Ackermann, president of the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz (Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation) for one year, has called for a Democracy Day on the Museumsinsel (Museum Island) in Berlin on Sunday, June 7. She warns of a creeping erosion of democracy through disinformation on social media, questioning of scientists, and attacks on social achievements like gender equality. Ackermann notes that cultural institutions must be protected from such gradual changes. She cites examples in European neighboring countries where cultural institutions are harassed, directors intimidated, and museum directors dismissed if they do not align with ruling parties. In Germany, she points to Saxony-Anhalt, where a party is attacking the cultural scene and only wants to fund what fits 'homeland care.' The AfD leads in polls for the upcoming state election there. The Democracy Day is organized with the Stiftung Hambacher Schloss and the Stiftung Berliner Mauer, featuring debates on patriotism, conscription, and artistic freedom. Ackermann emphasizes that the foundation of values must be preserved and defended, and that democracy is hard work.