German original Video here:    • Kündigung Wegen Systemkritik. Der Fal...  

If nothing else works, there is always the accusation of plagiarism. When one of the smartest and most critical voices in German political science is dismissed from one day to the next over dubious accusations of plagiarism in one of her popular (non academic) books, that should make us all nervous. What is happening in Germany?

In this interview, Dr Ulrike Guérot explains why the University of Bonn terminated her employment contract and what the accusations are about and how she is fighting against her public demonisation.

Dr. Guérot is the founder and co-director of the European Democracy Lab. She was a professor at the University for Continuing Education Krems starting in 2016, and from 2021 to 2023, she held the position of professor of European politics at the University of Bonn until her dismissal last year due to plagiarism accusations.

Dr. Guérot has also been a critic of government COVID-19 measures. At that time, she publicly presented important analyses of the social situation, including on the channel of the late philosopher Gunnar Kaiser.

When the Ukraine war broke out, she was one of the first signatories of the Manifesto for Peace by Sahra Wagenknecht and Alice Schwarzer. She has also repeatedly advocated for an immediate diplomatic solution to the war in the German media. For her realism-based analyses, she was harshly criticized.

Personally, I consider Ms. Guérot to be one of the greatest German thinkers of our time. Therefore, it is a distinct honor for me to speak with her today.