Racist comment against Boris Becker's son lands German politician in trouble

What's the story?

Boris Becker may be considered a national hero in his native Germany but that doesn't seem to have stopped German Member of Parliament (MP) Jens Maier from tweeting a seemingly racial slur towards Noah Becker, son of Boris Becker.

The tweet which has since been deleted, read, "It seems the little half-negro simply got too little attention." Maier claims that the tweet was written by one of his staff members who does not work with him anymore, an apology which appears to have been accepted by the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party leadership. The incident however, hasn't been forgotten just yet.

In case you didn't know...

The AfD party in Germany is a far-right party in the country which has suddenly garnered a lot of attention. Maier, who himself is a former judge and now sits as an MP for the party, seemingly complained and raised questions over Noah Becker being the 'eternal son' of the former tennis star.

The heart of the matter

The incident has left the MP in hot water. Even though he appears to have been let off with a warning, this has brought significant attention to the continuance of racial intolerance in Germany. It has even prompted Noah to file a criminal complaint against Maier.

In the past, Noah himself has claimed that Berlin is a 'white city' where he does not feel safe being of dark skin. He also claims to have been attacked in the city because of racial intolerance. Noah's father Boris too has written against the tweet in one of Germany's leading newspapers the Die Welt.

What's next?

There are more questions than answers in this situation but there is no doubt that the future of Germany rests on such incidents of seeming hate.

Author's take

The German MP may have been let off with a warning but there is a much bigger problem at hand here, one that cannot be ignored so easily.