Not only “Struwwelpeter” and “Pippi Longstocking” deserve critical consideration, but also German children’s songs.
Image: Picture Alliance
“Ten little N.”: When children sing together, they practice empathy and group behavior. Especially in a country with increasing migration, this can become a problem with certain songs. A guest post.
I.In the past few decades it has been observed that certain German children’s songs are used in the school environment for bullying and racist discrimination. These are always pieces that sing about non-German cultures or people. For example, in 2017 Tupoka Ogette reported in her book “Exit RACISM” about a mother who picks up her child from a school trip. She experiences that the class and the teachers sing the song of the “Ten Little N.” together when they get off the bus. Although her son is the only black child who begins to cry, everyone ends up clapping and none of the other parents intervenes.
In 2016, the Kinderwelten department reported in its information material about a school class in which the song “Three Chinese with the double bass” was sung and, on the instructions of the teacher, the children were asked to raise the corners of their eyes with their fingers to create “slit eyes”. The lawsuit filed by a Japanese father whose son felt he was being discriminated against was rejected on the grounds that the child had no Chinese background and could not feel discriminated against.