German People's Union (Germany)

deutsche volksunion, dvu

Last modified: 2012-12-15 by pete loeser
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Image by Marcus Schmöger, 24 Sep 2009

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German People's Union
Deutsche Volksunion, DVU

     The DVU is a right-extremist party originally founded in 1971 as an association for absorbing former NPD members leaving their party due to the lacking success at the time. Only in 1987 also a similarly named party came into being, the DVU-Liste D, that dropped the Liste D in 1991. From 1971 until 2009 led by Munich newspaper editor Gerhard Frey (Nationalzeitung) the DVU was largely seen as another enterprise of his instead of a true party. There were a few successes in state elections (Bremen, Schleswig-Holstein, Sachsen-Anhalt, Brandenburg) based on money-intensive billboard campaigns with right-populist, right-extremist and simplistic-to-primitive slogans. The parliamentary groups in the state parliaments had a remarkable tendency for unprofessional behavior, factional infight and splits. The relationship of the DVU to the more activist NPD always was a problematic one, sometimes there were agreements not to contest elections against each other, sometimes (as in the current Bundestag elections) both parties are taking part.
     The symbol of the original association was a very stylized black eagle with the white letters "DVU". There were associated organizations with different, but similar symbols. After the foundation as party in 1987 a capital letter "D" in the German national colours black-red-gold under the black inscriptions "DVU" and Deutsche Volksunion became the party symbol and remained largely unaltered until now.
     The party is not known for widespread flag use, in contrast to the NPD. Officially, only the German national flag is used, which is also in contrast to the NPD, as that party is currently favouring black-white-red over black-red-gold.
     At rare occasions white clothes with the logo of the time were used during indoor manifestations, usually as wall or balcony drapings. This was done with the old eagle logo and later with the newer "D" logo. Sometimes the latter is also used as a "real" flag during outdoor manifestations.
Sources: Letter from DVU, 17 April 2001; Party brochure with photography of convention at Passau 1980; Photographies in Deutsche Wochen-Zeitung 9 June 1989; Photographies in Deutsche Wochen-Zeitung 16 March 1990, 15 October 1993, and 9 October 1998; and Photography in Deutsche Stimme 7/1999
Marcus Schmöger, 24 Sep 2009

German People's Union 1980