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Excerpt from viral cell phone video: no migrants, no able-bodied residents, no topicality
Photo: YouTube
Disguised devils hit passers-by with sticks, people run away, stumble, fall on cobblestones and then, even when they are already on the ground, the attackers continue to strike. Loud cries of “ouch” can be heard in the background.
The cell phone video, which is going viral again these days, is usually subtitled with sentences like “Krampus hits migrants” or “Residents beat up asylum seekers during the Krampus parade.” The story then sounds something like this: Somewhere, anywhere, people with a migrant background tried to disrupt a famous carnival tradition. But: “But they did the math without the defensive residents” and, of course: “It’s sad what the EU is doing to the countries.”
But the video does not show any migrants. Or defensive residents. And it's not current either.
Confrontation in the sense of “trotting”
Instead, the photo is from December 2019 and shows the “Tuifltreib” in Vipiteno, South Tyrol. The website “Mimikama” exposed the deliberately false narrative four years ago.
The “Tuifltog” takes place annually on December 5th and is described by the city of Vipiteno itself as one of the “most spectacular Santa Claus parades in South Tyrol and the entire Alpine region”. In other regions, such as southern Bavaria or Upper Palatinate, Krampus parades also take place on the eve of St. Nicholas Day.
The South Tyrolean organizers of the “Tuifltog” reacted to the distribution of the video in 2019. All the people who were “punished” with rods were “exclusively local male youths who had equipped themselves with appropriate clothing and padding for this spectacle.” They are "personally known to the Tuifin and have voluntarily sought this confrontation in the sense of 'trotting' - i.e. a deliberate form of provocation of the evil fellow in the expectation of punishment." However, the kick is not acceptable, which "is not in keeping with tradition is connected."
»The absolute best day of the year«
One of the alleged victims also reported on Facebook in 2019: »Like every year, I went out early in the morning with my friends to look for the devils. We're ready to get a beating, we're looking forward to Christmas like little children. Devil’s Day is absolutely the best day of the year for many people from Vipiteno.«
The video was recently shared again on Telegram, this time with the statement that it was a recent recording from Rottweil in Baden-Württemberg. As the Schwarzwälder Bote reported, the Konstanz police headquarters have now taken a stand on the matter and asked not to share the video because it was neither recorded in Rottweil nor does it show what is claimed.
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