kind of irresponsible of them not to do their research on the subject, but germany doesn’t have the same history of minstrel shows and blackface comedy as we do. It makes sense that this would be seen there as nothing more than comedy.

Hail, ah thank its funny. Its ratt dang in line wit how mah peeple thank any doggon’ way!

“Exhibit A: David. Hasselhoff” pretty much sums it up.

This is also the country that has brought us Faust, Werner Herzog, and Kraftwerk. 

German comedian?  Somewhat of an oxymoron.

German comedian?  Somewhat of an oxymoron.

What is much more demeaning and irresponsible is acting like Obama.

Does he know that black people’s palms aren’t black?

Maybe he should of put up a billboard of himself dressed in a nazi uniform. Same reaction.

Ick bin ein Obama!  John F. Kennedy, Berlin 1960 (paraphrased)

Well I guess this bolsters that new NBC/? poll showing Obama is still love, love, loved over in Europe.

SooooooooWeeee!! (eee aww) Boy, you tellenum lack it is, doggonit – I tell you hwhat! Fly dat rebel flag hah now, ya’hear!!

Europe? Whuts dat? Sum kanda way to share a rope?! Boy, you tawlk funny! But I thank you a republikan, ratt? So dat make you good up in mah book mister “ba-rack must go”. (heeee heeeeeee haw – boy dats a hoot ratt dare. Real creative. I lack dat!)

Parry, Paylen, Backman, and all dem others I caint thank of ratt now in 2010. Wooo hooo (bang bang)

No one in germany likes D. Hasselhoff. It’s kind of an urban legend.

All this comments just show, that most europeans don´t know much about europe, germany and satire (which is allowed to do anything -> Tucholksky).

Yes, the billboard joke becomes more understandable if the author had researched the history of Berlin more thoroughly. President J. F. Kennedy visited Berlin in 1961, shortly after the building of the Berlin Wall. In order to express his solidarity with the West Germans he spoke the words “Ich bin ein Berliner” (=I am a Berliner), a sentence widely known across Germany. JFK brought hope but had no substantial help to offer to the citizens of West Berlin. Here lies the parallel to President B. Obama.

just like your whole existence

The phrase is “Ich bin ein Berliner!”. The year is 1961. Numbnut.

watch the billbord again, it uses the stereotype, points out to it.

If the Local, not only in confusing dates and stuff on Sonneborn, would have done its research properly, they would have found a ministrel-blues-country-blackface singer called Emmet Miller. Miller was maybe the most famous blackface act, especially as he appeared on the “race music” label Okeh. And behold, Miller had a huge fanbase in the 1920s in the black community. So blackface for sure started as a degrading rascist joking thing, it developed into an art form that was not only rascist. 

Even more if the American journalists and bloggers would have researched properly, you cannot write this article without stating, that Sonneborn just 2 weeks ago pulled off a publicity stunt/guerilla attack against the rascist/nationalist party (NPD). Being brave enough to put a funny adbust-poster illegaly along the whole street of the NPD party central. The joke would get lost without knowing both the original and fake NPD poster and the German language. But it told them “Get killed!”

Third one need to know, that DIE PARTEI just copies the most populist statements of other parties. It’s only own content is the “Building of walls”. Therefore takin popular figures like Kennedy/Obama which are both moked in the Obama-Poster is pretty funny if you know the context!

Last argument: if this sparks a racism discussion. It achieved the highest goal oif satire: discuss controversly and spark change!

Barack Obama is very popular in Germany, much more popular than George W. Bush. But, let’s be honest. Barack Obama is a pipe dream! He told us “Yes – we can”. But what has he changed since then? Not very much. The US economy still struggles very hard and the war in Afghanistan has become a second Vietnam. Martin Sonneborn is a satirist and politician. He uses the figure Barack Obama to show that contents are not that important in politics. If you want to get elected you have to be popular like Barack Obama. Even if you can’t effect anything. This is why Martin Sonneborn dressed up like Barack Obama. The billboard is definitely not ment to be racist!

I think the people in amerika just arent used to ist that there can be more than two partys in an election. there are 22 (!) partys in this election and only 4 or 5 will get into parlament. the rest are small minor partys, noone cares about them. and even satirical partys like “Die Partei” (=the party) can take part of this election.
they also have slogans like “MILFs against Merkel” and they also joked about the NPD (the Nazi Party)
this is diversity, so calm down…

ist=it

He had SEVEN albums go platinum there!!!  Obviously somebody was buying them. 

why don’t you send marines to tear down the billboard?

i just read that there are some other small partys in the usa, so i was wrong.
PS: the main issue for Die Partei is to rebuild the berlin wall.

I think the main problem of Obama was, that he tried consociationalism in the US. It would work great in germany, but in front of all those republican tea-baggers he had to fail. 

Get over yourself. 

Americans export people like Hasselholf to Germany and Jerry Lewis to France.  At the same time we   import The Beatles, Stones, Sabbath, Motorhead, and Sex Pistols who wind moving to the US.  That’s funny.

You’re welcome.

Yeah, consociationalism or any variation wouldn’t work here because we prefer to lead the world in innovation and technology.

You’re welcome for all the medical technologies, scientific advancements, entertainment, and saving Europe from the nightmare of National Socialism.  It’s what we do best. 

Oh yes, like “american morality”

…and Heidi Klum. Please keep her!

I personally don’t have a good set of morals.  But my Country sure does!  We donate more to world charitable causes than any other nation on earth.  We give more aid and assistance than any other country in the world.

How else would a milkface like Sonneborn depict Obama? If he just stood there in his untanned self, it wouldn´t make any sense.

Seven? Never ever! Even If he did it’s just like some kind of lovin’ the trash haha. :D There’s not that much high culture coming over from the states so we just had to buy some stuff of David H.

Word! Zustimmung!

So come over again and don’t forget the chewing gum.

He was there when the wall fell.

Either way, thank you for Werner Herzog, Klaus Kinski, and Rutger Hauer!

Yes, he was there. But the german citizens doesn’t want him to come. He was just here because he missed his flight back to the US at the end of ’89 … or something like that. Honestly – no one in germany likes Mr. Hasselhoff. Maybe some kids did during the early 90s but they liked New Kids Under The Block too… ;) Rutger Hauer?! You’re welcome. Keep him!

it’s not enough to have perry, bachmann, gingrich, romney, santorum, beck, bush, reagan, wayne, huntsman living in your country? you even vote for them. good luck america.

your country is also the one which caused or participated in almost every war after 1945

I had to laugh when I saw this billyboard. Can’t be humor cause I’m german. So what was the reason? Weird! But to all the full-time-job-offended in this world: You don’t like him? Then don’t vote for him. He doesn’t deserve your support. And like it or not, neighter Muhammad nor Barack Obama are immune of satire. Not here in Germany. Sonneborn cann’t be accused that Obama is black. If Obama had been green, than Sonneborn had painted himself green. Die PARTEI is the most political correct party on this planet. And to say it with the Words of Dwight Schrute: “I don’t understand why Michael is wasting his time with Spanish. I have
it on very good authority, that within 20 years everyone will be
speaking German. Or a Chinese-German hybrid.” …so don’t fuck with the leader of Die PARTEI. You could regret that once^^

Tsssss. ’63, boys.

C’mon guys. Sonneborn is sometimes playing with racist stereotypes – but that doesn’t mean he is a racist. The satire-magazine he was working for once made this picture when Obama visited Berlin: http://www.titanic-magazin.de/uploads/pics/0711-obama-kommt.jpg (“Obama is coming – Berlin is prepared”). In my eyes this way of humor is a good way to face up with racism.

I’m so sick of all the ‘sensitivity’ BS these days. I don’t get upset, as a white person, if anyone calls me a cracker or a gringo. Anyone, please  feel free to call me one of those names, and I won’t bat an eye. Let’s get past all the whining. Geez..

I bet the lib Germans will now vote for him!

didn’t they get the least funny country award? has to be true.

My nuts are fine, my memory, not so much.  You may have noted my comment was an attempt at humor but apparently you don’t under stand the word “paraphrased.”

Still, there were shows in german zoos with africans presenting “their culture” (or rather, what europeans thought it was), and if no real people were available, whites dressed up in blackface and grass skirts. i.e. it’s not entirely unknown, plus just last year there was a similar blackface scandal, clearly it’s part of Sonneborn’s satire to claim he didn’t know about it (a claim often used by right-wing politicians when they are caught being racist)

of course he does. He’s not as big an idiot as he appears in the articles. His palms are black for the same reason they used the blackest makeup they could find… it’s part of the joke. (The outrage that followed and Sonneborn’s statements being the joke. “The Local” just pulled that claim of general outrage from thin air, actually they were the first german publication to even show the billboard, there wasn’t even any time for outrage to build… Which is satirical in itself since that’s the yellow press’ oldest trick)

I guess I’ve had it with the PC founders that have gagged us in this country and changed us for all time.
Didn’t realize Germany held some of this,but enough from now on everything I don’t like I’m going to call it racist..whether it is connected,proper usage or not..
By the way  Ilike the piece.

If that’s your elitism test for high culture, how would you rate a country that listens to Rap-Crap?!

Kinda like, president-Obimbo. Straight up, oxymoron.

Are you talking about the one with the Stars&Stripes? The one Obimbo is rebeling against!

What would have been realy funny is, one with Obimbo draped in the American flag. Now there’s an oxymoron!! 

Don’t understand what, your humor, or, the word parsphrased? “Your humor”, is a paraphrase….get it?

Tell me libtards…..If a black man wears white face….Is that racist? (Movie: White Girls)
When a Hispanic man in Hollywood is made-up to look like a Native American….Is that racist?
When Shirley MacLain was made up and dressed to play a Geisha….Was that racist?
I think you, yourselves, are selective racists
(Of course I also think you are morons….but that goes without saying)

There IS American morality….There just isn’t any LIBERAL morality.

 Yes….unlike other countries that turn tail and run.
What’s your point?

Rutger Hauer is from the Netherlands. He is not german and – as far as I know – is glad not to be.

David Hasselhoff never made it to #1 with any of his albums in Germany. He had one #1 single here with “Looking for freedom”. That’s all.

To understand what Martin Sonneborn’s (the PARTEI’s) slogan means, one ought to know what “Satire”, “Non-pc-humour” and “irony” means. Or at least know what JFK said in 1961 and catch the joke.

Get a life. Get an interest in history (outside the US). Realize that 95% of what is happening worldwide is happening outside the US. Having done that – try to catch the joke again. THEN write an article. LEARN before you SPEAK.

The two most damaging words in the English language is Political Correctness!  So what if Obama and his Den of Demons don’t like it!  With websites like AttachWatch, from this UnAmerican Administration, Obama deserves to be made fun of.  America is not the only country getting sick and tired of his BS, he has proved himself to our adversaries to be a very, very weak, whimpy person.  And our Allies he has spit in their faces, like Israel.  I don’t think Obama is stupid, I think he is doing exactly what he wants to do, Destroy America from the inside.  As a Dem in 2008, I could not vote for his BS and I certainly won’t vote for it in 2012!  Most likely will never vote for a Dem again, since Obama, Pelosi, and Reid have turned it into the Looney Tunes Den of Demons!

The two most damaging words in the English language is Political Correctness!  So what if Obama and his Den of Demons don’t like it!  With websites like AttachWatch, from this UnAmerican Administration, Obama deserves to be made fun of.  America is not the only country getting sick and tired of his BS, he has proved himself to our adversaries to be a very, very weak, whimpy person.  And our Allies he has spit in their faces, like Israel.  I don’t think Obama is stupid, I think he is doing exactly what he wants to do, Destroy America from the inside.  As a Dem in 2008, I could not vote for his BS and I certainly won’t vote for it in 2012!  Most likely will never vote for a Dem again, since Obama, Pelosi, and Reid have turned it into the Looney Tunes Den of Demons!

Omg USA USA – we are Nr. 1.

I can live with the fact to be Nr. 2,3,4,5,…. it just less stressful. I just don´t care at which position europe or germany might be. If you understood all, what I have written as seomthing like “germany/europe is better than the US”. well you got my wiorng Mr. Pawlow.

I don´t get the relation to what I´ve written, also I wouldn´t say, that germans are having any better sense for satire, but exactly that is one factor, that makes satire more funny. The reaction on satire is often more interesting and funny, than the satire itself. This case is a good example, including this comments.