The head of the Neuengamme Concentration Camp Memorial, Oliver von Wrochem, has expressed concern over increasing attacks and vandalism. “We find stickers with Nazi symbols and graffiti on our monuments all the time” von Wrochem told the weekly newspaper Die Zeit. “Just recently, we discovered swastikas in one of the buildings and in the outdoor area.”
Von Wrochem spoke of neo-Nazis who openly displayed their SS tattoos on the premises. A far-right influencer had filmed a video in front of the entrance to the Neuengamme Concentration Camp Memorial, in which they denied the Holocaust.
The Neuengamme Concentration Camp Memorial is located in the southeast of Hamburg. Between 1938 and 1945, more than 100,000 people were incarcerated on the 57-hectare site and in the 86 satellite camps, with at least 42,900 of them being killed.
Due to the attacks, von Wrochem said in the Die Zeit that he has tightened the house rules. “Anyone who displays fascist, antisemitic, or derogatory symbols or makes corresponding statements can be expelled from the premises.” Additionally, the exhibition staff have been equipped with emergency buttons that allow them to alert the police.
The Neuengamme Concentration Camp Memorial will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of the war on May 3, 2025, with a large commemoration ceremony. Among the expected attendees is Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD).