DějinyGeschichteDejiny

In September 1991, nearly 500 people took part in several days of racist riots against asylum seekers and contract workers in the medium-sized Saxon town in Sorbian-influenced Upper Lusatia - nearly 1,000 onlookers cheered the removal of those attacked from their homes. These events, which were widely publicized in the media, together with similar riots and consequences in Rostock-Lichtenhagen in 1992, are considered formative experiences of neo-Nazis in unified Germany, which ultimately led to the formation of the "National Socialist Underground" (NSU). "Hoyerswerda" became synonymous with militant xenophobia in eastern Germany. In 2014, after lengthy discussions, the city inaugurated the "Open Door - Open Gate" memorial.