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Daughters and Sons of Gastarbeiters is a writers′ collective made up of children of the first generation of "Gastarbeiter" (guest workers). Their short stories tell of their personal experiences of migration to Germany, illuminating a hitherto neglected part of German history. By Ceyda NurtschMore

German Federal Minister of the Interior Thomas de Maiziere has doused a hotchpotch of both trivial and relevant concerns in the black, red and gold of the national flag and declared it to be the German "Leitkultur", meaning the country's core, dominant or leading culture. This is just plain silly. Commentary by Heribert PrantlMore

Germany is a country of immigration. Clinging to an out-dated and mythical understanding of what it means to be German not only adds grist to the right-wing populists′ mill, it also endangers social cohesion. By Andreas BockMore

Just a game? Think again! If the world is to survive, we all need to move closer together. Yet how can a society that ridicules others and reduces them to the level of pawns in a game expect to make any kind of constructive contribution? By Stefan Buchen

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Measures introduced since the 2015 New Year's Eve sex attacks in the German city of Cologne have led to greater repression, higher walls and tighter controls. The only ones to benefit are the people traffickers, says Hicham Aroud, an expert for migration and asylum policy based in the Moroccan city of Rabat. Interview by Martina SabraMore

Finding somewhere to live, pursuing asylum claims and other bureaucratic procedures distract refugee writers from their creative vocation and their self-esteem suffers. In the eyes of everyone else, they are mere refugees, the mastery of their own language a relic from an ever-receding past. How can authors adapt to their new countries? Must they remain prisoners to writing about yearning and nostalgia? By Rama JarmakaniMore

Streams of migration are a challenge. On the move along with individual people are whole cultures, languages and habits that are sometimes not understood outside their homelands. Music, as a non-verbal phenomenon bound up with strong feelings, could operate as a medium for bridging the consequent perplexity. By Hans-Jurgen LinkeMore