BERLIN—American C.J. Hopkins was sitting in the dock of the Berlin Tiergarten district court on Jan. 23.
He’s accused of violating Paragraph 86a of the German Criminal Code, “Use of symbols of unconstitutional and terrorist organizations.” Mr. Hopkins is a playwright, novelist, and political satirist and has been living in Germany for more than 20 years.
In August 2022, he posted two tweets with images of a mask with a swastika shining through. The image was created for the cover of his previously released book “The Rise of the New Normal Reich”—a collection of essays that criticize and satirize COVID-19 policies and restrictions.
The Berlin public prosecutor’s office in the summer of 2023 then began investigating Mr. Hopkins’s tweets.
He was then sentenced without a trial to a $3,902 (3,600 euros) fine or 60 days in prison by “penalty order” for “disseminating propaganda, the intention of which is to further the aims of the former National Socialist organization (Nazis).”
‘Symbols of Ideological Conformity’
The tweets both include a picture of the mask with accompanying text.
One reads: “The masks are symbols of ideological conformity. That’s all they are. They always have been. Stop pretending they were ever anything else, or get used to wearing them.”
The other post includes a quote from German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach: “The masks always send out a signal.”
The hashtag reads, “The masks are not a benign measure.”
Mr. Lauterbach shares responsibility for a large number of COVID-19 measures that have been enacted.
In the courtroom, the public prosecutor explained that the accusation was not about comparing Nazism to the government’s COVID-19 measures. Instead, it revolved around whether the use of this symbol immediately indicated opposition to the ideology of the national-socialist rule.
He believed the defendant’s statements that he was against Nazi ideology. However, the swastika, in the eyes of the prosecution, was not necessary to express his criticism of the COVID-19 measures.
Mr. Hopkins’s defense argued that it was obvious that the tweets were about advocating for the free democratic order. The legislation also did not prohibit the absolute use of the swastika.
Defense lawyer Friedemann Dablitz pointed out that Paragraph 86a allows exceptions for the use of unconstitutional symbols. Those include “to avert unconstitutional aims” and “to promote art or science, research or teaching.”
‘It Is About Punishing Dissent’
In a statement, the playwright expressed outrage at being prosecuted by German law enforcement for his tweets.Twenty years ago, he left the United States because of the “fascist atmosphere” there after the invasion of Iraq under George W. Bush. He migrated to Germany and built a new life here.
“I believed that Germany, given its history, would be the last place on earth to ever have anything to do with any form of totalitarianism again,” Mr. Hopkins said.
The satirist said he was dumbfounded to see thousands of people taking to the streets across Germany last week to protest against so-called right-wing extremism and fascism.
“Many of these people spent the past three years, 2020 to 2023, unquestioningly obeying orders, parroting official propaganda, and demonizing anyone who dared to question the government’s unconstitutional and authoritarian actions during the so-called COVID pandemic,” he said.
A simple internet search would have revealed that he had been opposing fascism, authoritarianism, and totalitarianism in his works for more than 30 years.
“And yet I am accused by the German authorities of disseminating pro-Nazi propaganda,” said the novelist, who’s married to a Jewish woman.
In his two tweets and essays, he wanted to compare the rise of a new form of totalitarianism with the rise of the most well-known form of 20th-century totalitarianism, German National Socialism.
‘We Are at a Crossroads Again’
Mr. Hopkins said he would continue to analyze and compare similarities and differences between both forms of totalitarianism and warn his readers.“We are, once again, at a crossroads. Not just here in Germany, but throughout the West,” the satirist said.
One path leads back to the rule of law, to democracy—the other leads to authoritarianism, “where authorities rule by decree, and force, and twist the law into anything they want, and dictate what is and isn’t reality, and abuse their power to silence anyone who disagrees with them.”
(Matthias Kehrein/The Epoch Times)
Several times during his statement, he was on the verge of tears—his voice failing.
Mr. Hopkins ended with the words: “We have been down that road before. Please, let’s not do it again.”
Judge: “Perhaps Not Everyone Was Foolish Sheep”
Judge Angelika Peck admonished the audience and declared the defendant acquitted. She saw in the tweets a distancing from a totalitarian system.However, Judge Peck criticized Mr. Hopkins’ statement: “Perhaps not everyone was foolish sheep who simply followed; perhaps they were convinced by the statements of the scientists.”
Unconditional compliance with measures is not just blind following, but consideration for others, she said.
Judge Peck concluded with the words: “In my assessment, it was ‘ideological gibberish,’ but that is not punishable.”
Censorship by Twitter
For Mr. Hopkins’s defense attorney, it was a victory for both art and freedom of expression.However, the entire process and the resulting costs were a significant burden for his client.
“One must ask whether critics of the government were deliberately prosecuted criminally so that this government could pursue its policies,” Mr. Dablitz said.
The court ruling shows that censorship occurred without his client having a chance to defend himself. Twitter deleted the tweets after being instructed by authorities to do so. Now, we know that the tweets were legal.
Mr. Hopkins’s book has been banned by Amazon in Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands.
The court declined to comment after the verdict. The judgment is only final if neither party files an appeal within a week of the decision.
