A town council in eastern Germany has voted to halt the installation of new memorial plaques commemorating Jewish victims of the Nazi regime, breaking with a long-standing national effort to acknowledge the country’s Holocaust history. The decision was made by the City Council of Heidenau, a town of approximately 16,500 residents, where a majority voted 13 to 6 in secret ballot to block the placement of seven new “stumbling stones” or “Stolpersteine.”
These small brass plaques, each about 10 by 10 centimeters, are typically embedded into sidewalks outside the last known residences of Nazi victims, most of whom were Jewish. Inscribed with the victim’s name and dates of birth and deportation, the stones serve as a decentralized and personal form of remembrance. Since the project began over 30 years ago, more than 116,000 Stolpersteine have been installed across 31 countries. Germany has regarded the stones as an essential act of memorializing the Holocaust and confronting its past.
The motion to ban further installations in Heidenau was put forth by a coalition comprising councilors from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), the center-right Christian Democratic Union (C.D.U.), the party of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and a group of local independents. They argued against placing the plaques in the pavement on the grounds that stepping on them could be viewed as disrespectful to the victims. Instead, the council proposed erecting a single memorial at the local cemetery.
The move has sparked widespread criticism throughout Germany. Leaders from the C.D.U., which generally distances itself from cooperation with the AfD, condemned the decision, emphasizing that public, everyday reminders in visible spaces play a vital role in Holocaust remembrance. Conservative politician Karin Prien, Germany’s education minister and a C.D.U. member, described the vote as scandalous.
Critics suggest that the ban reflects underlying political motives, particularly related to the AfD’s opposition to Germany’s culture of remembrance. The party’s national leadership characterizes the country’s engagement with its Nazi past as a “cult of guilt” and has previously downplayed the Holocaust's significance while employing Nazi-era slogans. Germany’s domestic intelligence agency classifies the AfD as a “suspected extremist” group, a charge the party disputes as politically motivated.
The controversy coincides with the AfD’s growing influence in German politics. The party currently leads in national polls and recently secured a regional election victory in Saxony-Anhalt, where it aims to form a governing coalition. This would mark the first time a far-right party governs a German state in the post-World War II era.
The Israeli ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, expressed deep disappointment over the council’s decision, stating on social media that “those who erase the victims of the past erase the past itself.”
Gunter Demnig, the artist who originated the Stolpersteine project, explained that the intention behind the stones is to personalize the immense tragedy of the Holocaust. By focusing on individual stories rather than abstract numbers, the memorials invite everyday reflection and remembrance. Generally, local groups such as schools, youth organizations, or nonprofits fund and organize installations, hosting ceremonies to honor the victims.