Apple winemaker causes trouble, according to an Instagram post

Benedikt Kuhn, founder of canned apple wine “Bembel with Care”, caused a controversy with an Instagram post on May 8. On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the surrender of the “Third Reich” and the end of World War II in Germany under his username “Apfelweinbaron” the message: “May 8 is not a day of liberation!” In the post, which was limited to 24 hours by Instagram, there was also a bomb that fell.

Kuhn’s publication has sparked outrage on the Internet about a possible right-wing attitude. Federal vice president of the Federation of Young Rural Germany, Lukas Stede, criticized Kuhn for using right-wing narratives.

Stede also posted several photos on Instagram. In one, Kuhn poses with his product with an iron cross on his shirt. Another image shows Kuhn’s Instagram account, through which the businessman claims that Germany has been “occupied” for 75 years, among other things by American and British soldiers.

This narrative is often used by “Reich citizens” to delegitimize the Federal Republic. In fact, the statute was abolished in 1954, the Federal Republic gained partial sovereignty and was able to join NATO. Germany received full sovereignty with the 1990 two plus four treaty, which functions as a peace treaty and allowed reunification.