Monitoring and Documentation of Antidemocratic Mobilization in Saxony

The monitoring and documentation of antidemocratically motivated incidents act as a fundamental pillar of the research activities of the Else Frenkel-Brunswik Institute.

Since the uncovering of the series of murders by the National Socialist Underground (NSU) and the associated failure of the state security authorities to intervene, the need for independent and scientifically reliable democracy monitoring has become unmistakable. Such monitoring cannot be carried out sufficiently by state authorities – for instance, by the federal and state offices for the protection of the constitution and the police state security service – due in part to reasons of secrecy. In addition, the sensitivity of state authorities to antidemocratic activities as well as attacks based on an ideology of inequality has also been frequently criticized by civil society.

For this reason, the monitoring and documentation of antidemocratic incidents in Saxony represent a fundamental pillar of EFBI’s research activities, along with attitudinal research, sociospatial research in local conflict spaces, and psychosocial counseling.

MONITORING OF ANTIDEMOCRATIC MOBILIZATION ON THE INTERNET

The aim of monitoring antidemocratic mobilization on the internet is to record and observe online networks and structures and to keep a watchful eye on the connections of and the issues focused upon by authoritarian and antidemocratic actors. Focusing on Saxon actors and activities in Saxony, the findings are made available to local decision-makers and civil society initiatives. The public is also informed about developments and focal points of antidemocratic mobilization through publications and media reports. Additionally, further qualitative and quantitative research projects based on this data are foreseen.

Of particular interest for this monitoring are relevant structures both within social media platforms, image boards, and instant messenger services as well as within gaming platforms and live streaming services. This monitoring is conducted in cooperation with the Amadeu Antonio Foundation (AAS).

DOCUMENTATION OF ANTIDEMOCRATIC MOBILIZATION IN SAXONY

In addition to internet monitoring, the efforts, incidents, and actions of Saxon actors from the extreme right will be documented and analyzed. On the one hand, the insights of civil society actors will be collected and sorted; on the other hand, already existing perspectives will be complemented with further information and data where an additional focus is necessary or blind spots can be identified. This documentation includes, among other things, music concerts of the neo-Nazi scene, demonstrations with the participation of antidemocratic actors, meeting places of antidemocratic actors, crimes with a misanthropic background, and political actions with antidemocratic content or intentions. Saxon civil society and local authorities are informed at regular intervals about the results of the documentation, which are not least integrated into the research projects of EFBI. Publications and media contributions also regularly inform the interested public about the aforementioned topics.