Free Speech

Police Investigate German Historian for Hitler-Putin Meme

Germany’s law against Nazi symbolism "is being misused to silence people with dissenting views," Rainer Zitelmann tells Reason.

Reem Ibrahim | 3.13.2026 3:13 PM

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(Rainer Zitelmann)

In Europe, it's not just making fun of a president's wife or making edgy jokes on social media that can lead to fines and jail time, but criticizing authoritarian leaders, too.

In early February, Rainer Zitelmann, a German historian and sociologist, received a letter from Berlin police informing him he was under investigation for violating Germany's criminal code by using "symbols of unconstitutional and terrorist organizations."

"I will turn 69 in June, and it is the first time in my life that I have come into conflict with the law," Zitelmann tells Reason. Zitelmann, who has written for Reason, wrote his doctoral dissertation on the evils of Nazism and its anticapitalist roots.

The post in question, which Zitelmann reshared, showed a side-by-side image of Adolf Hitler and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Hitler's speech bubble read, "Give me........

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