Tuesday, October 26, 2021
“Pimmelgate” in Hamburg
Police want to hang the poster after all
Back and forth in Hamburg’s Schanzenviertel: strangers hang a poster in front of the Rote Flora with the inscription “Andy, you are so 1 dick”. The police paint it over twice, and the writing reappears twice shortly afterwards. This should be over now.
In connection with the so-called “Pimmelgate” around Hamburg’s Senator for the Interior Andy Grote from the SPD, the Hamburg police put an end to the cat-and-mouse game. She will no longer paint over the poster at the left-wing autonomous Rote Flora cultural center in the Schanzenviertel with the words “Andy, you are so 1 dick, step back”.
Unknown posted the poster on Saturday, since then police officers had painted over it twice. The slogan is now back on the poster in a slightly modified form. The police had stated the day before that there was an insult in the room with this lettering. The police are subject to the principle of legality and must take action.
The spokeswoman said the police had now explored options for action with the prosecutor to get out of this spiral. If the statement is repeated and the knowledge that Grote does not want to file a criminal complaint with the same insults, the police can dispense with filing a complaint. The officers secured the last status of the poster as a photo, from now on the poster should no longer be painted over by the police.
The dispute was triggered by a tweet sent to Grote in May with the wording “You’re so 1 dick”. It came in response to a tweet from Grote, in which Grote described people as “ignorant” who had celebrated in the Schanzenviertel despite Corona.