The United States under Trump

Are comparisons with the Nazi dictatorship justified?

Keynote Address: Dr. Christoph von Marschall
Panel Discussion: Dr. Melinda Crane, Dr. Christoph von Marschall, and Prof. Dr. Michael Wildt
Moderator: Dr. Andrea Riedle

What defines a functioning democracy? How stable was democracy in the U.S. before Trump took office? What changes have occurred since Trump’s second term? How should the increasingly common public comparisons to the Nazis be interpreted? Are there parallels to the National Socialists’ rise to power in Germany in 1933? Are comparisons between the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Gestapo appropriate? What is the attitude of the U.S. public? These are some of the questions that will be discussed in the panel discussion.

Christoph von Marschall is the diplomatic correspondent for the editorial board of the “Tagesspiegel.” Since 1991, he has written primarily about foreign and security policy. Since 2005, he has reported from the U.S. with White House access under four presidents (George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and Trump again).

Melinda Crane, an American journalist, regularly analyzes transatlantic politics for several German and international TV and radio stations.

Michael Wildt is a retired professor of 20th-century German history with a focus on National Socialism at Humboldt University in Berlin. Translated with DeepL

Meeting point: Auditorium

Next date:

• Date Tuesday, 07/July/2026 19:00 bis 20:45
• Venue Topographie des Terrors - Dokumentationszentrum
• Address Niederkirchnerstraße 8, 10963 Berlin-Kreuzberg