The mob in Chemnitz had a lot in common with the neo-Nazis, Ku Klux Klan followers and other extremists who caused mayhem a year ago in Charlottesville, Virginia, writes Ian BurumaMore

Cosmopolitanism is clearly a dirty word to the Trump administration, which is increasingly aligning itself with nativist movements hostile to ethnic or religious minorities. In the process Trump and his advisors are walking on thin political ice, argues Ian Buruma in his essayMore

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic US presidential nominee, recently described supporters of her opponent, Donald Trump, as a ″basket of deplorables″. It was neither a tactful nor an elegant phrase and she later apologised for her remark. But she was more right than wrong. By Ian BurumaMore

When people panic, they can become hysterical and hysteria often leads to mass violence. When politicians convince people that they are in a life-or-death battle – that survival is a matter of "us or them" – anything becomes possible. An essay by Ian BurumaMore

In the wake of the Paris attacks, many people were quick to view the killings as a direct attack on democracy and to claim that freedom of speech is absolute. In this essay, Ian Buruma explores the principles of free speech and toleranceMore

What began as a protest against plans to build a kitschy shopping centre on the site of a small park in the heart of Istanbul has escalated into a conflict of values. By Ian BurumaMore