Triggerpunkte

"Social conflicts are never simply there, they are also socially produced: ignited, fuelled, triggered. There is more and more talk of a "division of society". Even in the everyday perception of many people, irreconcilable camps are increasingly facing each other. As plausible as they may sound, such diagnoses raise questions: How far apart are opinions in the population really? And is society really more divided today than it was at the time of the student protests or in the early nineties?not least because a split can also be conjured up, more clarity is needed. Steffen Mau, Thomas Lux and Linus Westheuser elaborately map attitudes in four arenas of inequality: poverty and wealth; migration; diversity and gender; climate protection. On many big issues, the surprising finding is, there is some consensus. However, when certain trigger points are touched, the debate suddenly intensifies: Equality yes, but please no "gender language"! Environmental protection yes, but who bears the costs? A 360-degree survey of the conflicts around old and new inequalities that provides an indispensable basis for discussion and demystifies many myths.