Graffiti artists reclaim Nazi hate symbols by transforming them into art

A street art campaign in Berlin aims to change neo-Nazi graffiti into playful images.

Graffiti artist Ibo Omari poses for a portrait in his shop in Berlin, Germany on August 18, 2017.
Reuters

Graffiti artist Ibo Omari poses for a portrait in his shop in Berlin, Germany on August 18, 2017.

Horrified at the sight of swastikas scrawled on walls, children's playgrounds and building sites, graffiti artists in Berlin are transforming the Nazi symbols into colourful artwork such as flowers, cars and animals.

The swastika, which was adopted by Adolf Hitler's Nazi party, is banned in Germany. Right-wing sentiment has risen in the country due to an influx of more than a million migrants and refugees in the last two years.

Ibo Omari, who runs a graffiti shop and The Cultural Heirs youth club, encourages young people to look out for swastikas in their local area and then creatively paint over them - after getting permission from whoever owns the defaced property.

"When tourists come to Berlin and look at a wall and see a swastika, they'll think: 'What's going on here? There are Nazis everywhere!' And we don't want that," Omari said.

TRT World's Denee Savoia has more.

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