Rights Against the Right

The Background

The extreme right have been concealing their hateful ideas through coded messages. Codes – used in place of explicit far-right terms – mean lawmakers are incapable of banning their use. This makes it possible for Nazis to use them on merchandise such as t-shirts and sweaters, which they sell to finance their activities.

„Laut gegen Nazis" (Noise against Nazis) wanted to create a campaign that boosts donations and educates people on existing Nazi codes and abbreviations.

[data-wf-bgvideo-fallback-img] { display: none; } @media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) { [data-wf-bgvideo-fallback-img] { position: absolute; z-index: -100; display: inline-block; height: 100%; width: 100%; object-fit: cover; } }

THE RESEARCH

The campaign took more than two years to realise and research was integral to its success. We led countless interviews with ex-Nazis, conducted in depth data research of their e-commerce network and evaluated insider reports shared by ex-members of the extreme right-political scene.
‍
Our work revealed a strong link between merch sold by prominent online Nazi shops all over Europe and the significance of Nazi codes. Worn at music festivals, protests and political events, these abbreviations are not only codes for the scene. When printed on merch, they become a significant source of funding for their operations.

THE IDEA

Where lawmakers are incapable of acting with bans, we found a simple way to outsmart Nazis and prohibit them from using their codes: through trademark law.

Together with Laut gegen Nazis, we secured trademark rights for German and international Nazi codes at the European trademark office. As the new, rightful owners of these trademarks, we can now bring Nazi shops to justice for the first time ever — by forcing them to remove and destroy the merch bearing these codes and claiming compensation for any items sold.

With many more trademarks already in publication, this is only the beginning. And with overwhelming support from all over the world, we'll continue to put a stop to one of the biggest sources of funding for Nazis.

THE RESULT

Our campaign managed to make Nazi codes part of the mainstream public discourse. We ignited strong conversations and played a pivotal role in reshaping the public view of Nazi merchandise carrying their disgusting ideologies. The media reach spanned a colossal 2.2 billion people. Online, we reached an impressive 117 million. Fostering an active engagement of 170,000, our campaign has masterfully brought about a wave of awareness for our client, Laut gegen Nazis.

The impact manifests in a staggering 630% surge in searches related to the NGO and Nazi codes. Donations have increased by a massive 367% — no mean feat, given that general charitable donations in Germany have plummeted by 30%. To summarise, our results have vastly exceeded the expectations set by our client.

2.2 B

MEDIA REACH

117 M

SOCIAL REACH

+176000

ENGAGEMENTS

32 Countries

MEDIA COVERAGE

+630 %

INCREASE SEARCH REQUEST

+687 %

DONATION INCREASE