German Court Convicts a Prominent Far-Right Politician for Using a Nazi Slogan Again

A high-profile politician in the far-right Alternative for Germany party was convicted for the second time Monday of knowingly using a Nazi slogan at a political event.

Björn Höcke, who plans to run for governor in the eastern state of Thuringia in September, was fined for using the banned Nazi slogan “Everything for Germany.”

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Höcke was already fined 13,000 euros in May, also for using symbols of an unconstitutional organization, a verdict that his lawyers are appealing.

The earlier case centered on a speech in Merseburg in May 2021 in which Höcke used the phrase “Everything for Germany!” Judges last month agreed with prosecutors’ argument that the former history teacher was aware of its origin as a slogan of the Nazis’ SA stormtroopers.

In the current case, prosecutors alleged that he repeated the offense at an Alternative for Germany, or AfD, event in Gera in December {snip}

They alleged that Höcke said “Everything for …” and encouraged the audience to shout “Germany!”

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