She Fights Fascism in the Place Where It's Scariest. Here's What She Has Learned.

"Heidi Reichinnek, a leader of Germany's far-left Die Linke party, is 37, has tattoos, swears, and posts prolifically on TikTok. She wears friendship bracelets her supporters make for her, in reference to her love of Taylor Swift, and says she has some 300 or 400 by now. (" Tax the rich means Taylor Swift too, so don't worry," she said.) She speaks in rapid-fire sentences,"

"Reichinnek, whose party name translates to "the Left," is also a political success: Die Linke made a shocking breakthrough in February's election. It had been expected to get less than 5 percent of the vote but instead won 8.8 percent, thanks largely to the youth vote. This was enough to surpass the threshold to sit in the Bundestag, Germany's parliament."

"During that period, the far right in Germany and America have become intertwined, with high-profile MAGA figures defending or promoting the AfD. Just before the election, Vice President J.D. Vance blasted Germany's mainstream parties for stonewalling the AfD. Rep. Paulina Luna has met with AfD members, and the party's deputy leader met with officials from the National Security Council and the State Department. This friendship has emerged as Germany's own intelligence agency has classified it as an extremist"

Heidi Reichinnek is 37, has tattoos, swears, and posts prolifically on TikTok. She wears friendship bracelets her supporters make for her because of her love of Taylor Swift and says she has some 300 or 400. Reichinnek became famous after a fiery speech denouncing the head of the dominant center-right party for working with the far right, breaking a long-standing taboo in a nation with a history of fascism. Die Linke made a surprising February breakthrough, winning 8.8 percent largely on youth support and surpassing the Bundestag threshold. Centrist parties have shifted right on immigration while the AfD has surged and forged ties with US MAGA figures, prompting Germany's intelligence agency to classify that friendship as extremist.

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