Thousands of German cities awarded Hitler honorary citizenship during his lifetime. Most were quick to revoke the title after 1945, but some, like the G8 summit venue of Bad Doberan, forgot to do so -- and are now left with red faces.
Bad Doberan still has to get used to being in the international spotlight. This June, the heads of the eight leading industrialized nations will descend on the sleepy eastern German town to discuss global issues at the G8 summit.
But too much attention can bring to light inconvenient truths, as the people of Bad Doberan are learning to their cost: they stand accused of still having Adolf Hitler, the ultimate persona non grata, as one of their city's honorary citizens. In a pioneering gesture, their city council awarded the dictator the title in 1932, but -- in contrast to most of Hitler's honorary citizenships elsewhere -- it seems to never have been officially revoked. More on SPIEGEL ONLINE also see Indymedia
Bad Doberan Website and Wikipedia
top image by John Heartfield / Helmut Herzfeld