Teachers Report on School Life with Nazi Slogans in Book - German Teachers Quit After Years of Far-Right Harassment in Schools
Two teachers from a school in Burg, Brandenburg, have left their jobs after facing harassment and threats from far-right groups. Their decision follows years of documenting extremist incidents, including swastikas, racist slurs, and intimidation in classrooms. In April 2023, they went public with an open letter exposing the scale of the problem.
Laura Nickel and Max Teske, the two educators, recently published a book titled The Far-Right Shift in the Classroom. It details their experiences at the Burg school, where students displayed far-right symbols and used coded language like the number '88'—a known extremist reference. One incident involved a student wearing a T-shirt with the code at a secondary school in nearby Rathenow.
The teachers argue that schools and politicians have failed to address the issue effectively. Alongside other activists, they founded the Schools for More Democracy alliance to push for stronger civic education and stricter measures against far-right ideologies. Their calls also include age restrictions for social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram, which they believe amplify extremist content.
Brandenburg is not alone in facing this problem. Official reports reveal widespread incidents across Germany. In the 2024/2025 school year, Brandenburg recorded 537 far-right cases, while Saxony saw a sharp rise to 245 incidents in 2025. Other states reported similar trends: Thüringen (198 in 2025), Hessen (159 in 2025), Berlin (126 in 2025), and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (235 in 2024/2025). Sachsen had already logged 155 incidents in 2024 before the numbers climbed further.
The teachers' departure highlights the growing challenge of far-right extremism in German schools. Their book and advocacy work aim to push for systemic changes, from stricter monitoring to better education. Meanwhile, rising incident numbers suggest the issue extends far beyond a single school or region.
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