AfD on equality and diversity

The AfD wants to end state programs that promote acceptance of homosexual and transgender people among children of kindergarten and elementary school age. It calls this early sexualization and says judging lifestyles and sexuality is up to parents alone.

The state has programs for daycare centers and elementary schools. They promote acceptance of gay and transgender people. The AfD wants to end these programs. It says only parents should talk to small children about these topics.

As an example, the platform names a so-called daycare kit from a state government action plan that questions the idea of the normal family. In the AfD's view this goes too far and is driven in Hesse mainly by the Greens. Judging lifestyles and sexuality should rest with parents until children show their own interest in these topics. The party rejects every form of what it calls early sexualization.

The AfD wants to stop funding gender studies programs, professorships and research projects and redirect the money to STEM fields. Gender-inclusive language should no longer be used by public authorities or public broadcasters.

The AfD wants to stop spending money on gender research. The money should go to subjects like math and technology. Public offices and public broadcasters should stop using gender-inclusive language. That means special word forms meant to include all genders. At universities, it should play no role in grades.

Existing gender professorships would not be refilled, and ongoing research projects would be allowed to run out. The AfD considers the methods of this research unscientific and sees no benefit for the economy or society. Under the platform, gender-inclusive language may not affect the grading of academic work. The platform cites the Council for German Orthography and says 71 percent of Germans reject gender-inclusive language. The party also rejects state requirements for "politically correct" language.

The AfD wants to stop the muezzin's call to prayer and ban full-face veils in public. Headscarves would also be banned in the civil service and for children under 14 in public institutions. Sharia courts, child marriages and polygamous marriages are to be stopped.

The AfD wants to ban the muezzin's call. That is the Islamic call to prayer. Women should not be allowed to cover their whole face in public. Headscarves should be banned for people working for the state. This should also apply to children under 14 in public institutions.

The platform justifies the ban on the call to prayer by saying that, in the AfD's view, it spreads Islam's claim to rule over all areas of life. The party sees criticism of Islam as covered by freedom of speech. Sharia courts, parallel justice, and child or polygamous marriages under Islamic law are to be stopped. The headscarf ban in the civil service is justified by the state's duty of neutrality.

The AfD rejects gender quotas in higher education, work and politics, as well as women-only degree programs. In its view, women should prevail through performance, and plans for the advancement of women should serve only as guidance. Women who choose family over a career should not be disadvantaged and should receive basic financial security.

The AfD is against quotas for women. A quota sets how many jobs go to women. The AfD says performance should decide. Women should choose for themselves whether to work or be a housewife and mother. Housewives and mothers should not become poor.

The AfD regards quotas as hostile to performance and unsuited to achieving equal rights, saying they cause disrespect among male colleagues. The platform considers it wrong to force equality because women have different needs than men. In politics the party wants more women, but without parity rules, relying on outreach and inclusion in organizations. Plans for the advancement of women in companies and public agencies should not be binding. For women without paid work, the AfD demands good financial security during child-rearing and in retirement.

The AfD wants to reduce pay differences between women and men for equal performance. Flexible return-to-work models and more child care are meant to make it easier for women to come back and advance. Single parents should get priority for child care places and schools.

Women and men should earn the same for the same performance. Women should be able to return to work more easily after a break. There should be more child care for this. Single parents should be first in line for a place in day care or school.

The platform cites the so-called part-time trap as a reason why few women hold leadership positions, noting effects on income and pensions. Return models, for example with remote work, are to be promoted quickly and with little bureaucracy. Fixed-term jobs at universities are to be reduced in favor of permanent ones. According to the AfD, single mothers face a high risk of poverty and need special support.

The AfD wants to renovate, expand and keep funding women's shelters and counseling centers. Awareness programs in schools and clubs are meant to protect against violence and discrimination, and doctors would have to report genital mutilation to the authorities. Prevention of sexual abuse is also to be stepped up.

The AfD wants to protect women better from violence. There should be more and better women's shelters. Women find safety there. Schools and clubs should teach about violence. Doctors should report genital mutilation to the authorities. Victims of abuse should get more help.

The platform attributes patriarchal family structures and genital mutilation to immigration in recent years and wants to further develop prevention plans. To counter sexual abuse of girls, parents, child care workers and teachers are to be made more aware and counseling expanded, also with regard to violence against women with disabilities. At work, contact points are to be set up for women facing discrimination or bullying, and employers should sanction degrading portrayals of women. On prostitution, the AfD wants to strengthen the rights of women who work voluntarily and fight forced prostitution.