Carolin Amlinger and Oliver Nachtwey Receive the 2025 Geschwister Scholl Prize

The 2025 Geschwister Scholl Prize of the Bavarian Association of the German Book Trade and the City of Munich goes to Carolin Amlinger and Oliver Nachtwey for their book Destructive Desires. Elements of Democratic Fascism.

In their study, the authors shed light on how disappointment with the promises of liberal democracy — freedom, participation, and security — can give rise to a “democratic fascism”: a destructive attitude emerging from within democratic societies. Drawing on numerous interviews and observations, they trace how resentment and insecurity spread from the social mainstream into radicalised milieus.

The jury praised the book’s intellectual independence and its courage to name uncomfortable truths, highlighting its call for a “new antifascism” based on justice, participation, and freedom.

The Geschwister Scholl Prize, endowed with €10,000, honors works that demonstrate intellectual independence and promote civic freedom and moral courage. The award ceremony will take place on November 25, 2025, in Munich.