Von 3.5 auf 135° – Wie man ein Lueger-Denkmal stürzte

"Just under 100 years ago, the most notorious Austrian politician of all time paid the following tribute to Dr Karl Lueger: “Today I see in this man the greatest German mayor of all time.” (Mein Kampf, 1925, p. 59). Given all the historical ambivalence, one can certainly not blame Municipal Department 7 (City of Vienna Culture), under Social Democratic leadership, for having long agonised over the design of the Lueger memorial: it was to be 3.5°, and thus a full 3.5 more than 0°! When, in the 90th+6 minute of the ‘victim myth’ injury time, the really big surprise finally came, all Viennese were left speechless: the decimal point shifted, a ‘1’ moved forward – the Hitler model is no longer merely tilted, but has been toppled by 135°! Chemical solution or winch strap: how did Lueger’s fall come about? Who pulled off this daring feat? Will the Councillor for Culture have the statue re-erected? These and other questions are explored on the walks between Oskar-Kokoschka-Platz and the former Dr Karl Lueger-Platz, accompanied by Jewish voices, activists, historians and city representatives. "