“Climate terrorists” has been chosen as the word of the year 2022 in Germany. The phrase was used in public discourse to discredit activists and their protest for greater climate protection, justifying jury choices. He criticized the use of the term because activists “are equated with terrorists and are therefore criminalized and defamed”.
The jury complained that nonviolent forms of protest, civil disobedience and democratic resistance were placed in the context of violence and hostility to the state.
The public can offer nonsensical suggestions.
Nonsense has been named in Germany since 1991. The decision is made by an independent, honorary jury, based on recommendations made by the public. However, the amount of suggestions for a single word is insignificant. In 2021 the election fell into “pushback”.
Language-critical action seeks to draw attention to the inappropriate use of language, and thus raise awareness, according to its own statements. Critics accuse him of acting as a kind of “language police” or morally discrediting political positions in public debates.
The jury, mostly made up of linguists, took the second place with the phrase “social tourism”, which was chosen as “nonsense” in 2013. The head of the Christian Democrats (CDU), Friedrich Merz, used the word last September for war refugees from Ukraine, and later apologized for it.
The jury saw in the use of the word “discrimination against people fleeing the war and seeking protection in Germany”. In addition, the word obscures their fundamental rights. The phrase “defense architecture”, which was criticized for being misleading and euphemistic, ranked third. The term refers to a type of construction that prevents the homeless from settling in public places for longer.
(SDA)