Germany commemorates victims of racist shooting, 1 year on

BERLIN (AP) — Top officials, religious leaders and soccer stars are commemorating the victims of a racist attack in the German town of Hanau last year. A gunman shot dead nine people with immigrant backgrounds before killing his mother and then himself on Feb. 19, 2020. The rampage near Frankfurt caused widespread shock in Germany and beyond. Anti-racism campaigners called for a crackdown on hate speech of the kind espoused by the attacker, who left behind a paranoid rant filled with conspiracy tropes and vitriol against migrants. The head of Germany’s Protestant Church, Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, called Friday for vigilance when it comes to overt and hidden racism.