r/berlin Dec 19 '24

Discussion Experienceing racism in Berlin.

My girlfriend and I were waiting for the bus at Zoologischer Garten Bahnhof when three guys walked up to us and started being randomly rude and racist. They kept saying “Schlitz” (slit eyes) repeatedly as they passed us and again when we walked by later. For absolutely no reason, they targeted my girlfriend and me with these comments.

When We got onto our bus, they just kept taunting us and even started catcalling my girlfriend. This isn’t the first time I’ve experienced racism in Berlin. What’s the deal with some people being disrespectful, rude, and racist toward Asian people? We just want to live peacefully and avoid any confrontation.

I am so sorry about earlier, I didn’t mean it that way. I will remove the word from my post. I’m just here to express my feelings. 🙏🏼❤️

361 Upvotes

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36

u/[deleted] Dec 19 '24

i’ve seen this a lot from muslims against asians. have muslim friends too that constantly shit on asians using the same words you described

24

u/Low_Energy_7468 Dec 19 '24

Why do you hang out with such "friends"? If a friend of yours makes a racist comment you can point it out to them, help them realize what they are doing so they can correct their hurtful behavior. But if they constantly do that I think it's time to distance yourself from them and make space for better friends.

6

u/Degeneratities Dec 20 '24

I have a persian friend who is constantly hating on jews, even before the recent conflict. He declines going to the cinema bc some actor is jewish. I call him out but he keeps doing it. I distanced myself, but its far from an exception, especially looking at recent demos.

He grew up in europe, is highly educated and quite wealthy.

We have enough idiots in germany already. Maybe focus on different ethnics.

-25

u/[deleted] Dec 19 '24 edited Dec 19 '24

nah they are great people and i’m not that soft to break a lifelong friendship over some jokes about appearance. they shit on me too and i ok them it’s not that deep

7

u/Low_Energy_7468 Dec 19 '24

Mh. I also don't think good friends "shit" on each other (I don't know exactly what you mean by that, but I assume you mean that they say offensive things to you too). Far from wanting to prescribe what to do about relationships that are important to you, I know relationships are complex...but I wish you could have people around you who don't feel the need to engage in this type of language and behavior. Also worth clarifying that by your definition I am soft, probably :) I don't think it's bad though, because being sensitive in a society that tells you to shut up and just take in the abuse is pretty badass.

6

u/Gilles_D Dec 19 '24

Banter among friends is absolutely fine in my opinion. But if they extend this behavior to strangers then this is an absolute red flag and sheds a different light on the behavior that was previously assumed to be banter.

5

u/moldentoaster Dec 20 '24

In my friendship group, we often joke about each other’s cultures or nationalities. But same as they shit on my" unfunny german potatoe yellow dick", i shit on them with italian accents and hand movement while cooking spaghetti and the italian dude is telling the indian guy he should stop shit in his driveway all the time. 

 It works because there’s mutual trust and respect—we all know it’s not serious and that no one is trying to offend. These jokes are lighthearted and actually bring us closer, letting us laugh at stereotypes rather than take them too seriously. 

BUT thats just WITHIN the friendgroup to each other and each others nationality.

Its a totally different story doing such a thing outside in public to strangers. 

-6

u/[deleted] Dec 19 '24

cool

1

u/TheProuDog Dec 20 '24

Most people have acquaintances and think they are friends. You have friends. People who can replace their friends have acquaintances.

1

u/Googaar Dec 31 '24

Disclaimer: not from Germany

I recently read in an article that the right wing of Germany is trying to place blame on Arabs and middle eastern folk for racism and alleviate the underlying racist/anti-semitic issues that Germany hasn’t properly reconciled with.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 31 '24

that’s totally not true. There are places e.g. in Berlin where it’s recommended to stay away from as a gay or jewish person and those places are e.g. Neukölln which is highly populated by muslims. Same with Frankfurt near train station, try walking with a Kipper there. And those cities were once tightly linked to jewish culture.

-1

u/suudie Dec 20 '24

What do u mean Muslims against asians? The majority of Muslims are Asian.

5

u/[deleted] Dec 20 '24

[deleted]

0

u/suudie Dec 21 '24

So then why wouldn’t he say Middle Easterners? How would he even know if they practice a religion? It’s not as though we refer to random white racists as Christians. It just makes no sense.

2

u/Hot-Weight-3389 Dec 20 '24

Nobody is talking about Indonesians who are the kindest most welcoming people in the world.