Bundesarchiv B 145 Bild-F054629-0029, Ludwigshafen, CDU-Bundesparteitag

Bundesarchiv B 145 Bild-F073616-0021, Mainz, CDU-Bundesparteitag, Blüm

Norbert Blüm (21 July 1935 – 23 April 2020) was a German politician who served as a

federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

legislator A legislator (also known as a deputy or lawmaker) is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people of the state. Legislatures may be supra-national (for ex ...

from

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...

, chairman of the CDU North Rhine-Westphalia (1987–1999), and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs. Blüm was the only cabinet member who served in his function for all sixteen years of

Helmut Kohl Helmut Josef Michael Kohl (; 3 April 1930 – 16 June 2017) was a German politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and Leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) from 1973 to 1998. Kohl's 16-year tenure is the longes ...

's time as

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of Germany. He served as a member of the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...

from 1972 to 1981 and again from 1983 to 2002. Blüm was part of the left wing of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Early life and education

Born in

Rüsselsheim am Main Rüsselsheim am Main is the largest city in the Groß-Gerau district in the Rhein-Main region of Germany. It is one of seven special status cities (implementing several functions that counties normally provide) in Hessen and is located on the Mai ...

, Blüm attended the ''

Volksschule The German term ''Volksschule'' generally refers to compulsory education, denoting an educational institution every person (i.e. the people, ''Volk'') is required to attend. In Germany and Switzerland it is equivalent to a combined primary (' ...

''. In 1950, aged 15, Blüm joined the CDU. This year he also joined the

IG Metall IG Metall (; IGM; German: ''Industriegewerkschaft Metall'', "Industrial Union of Metalworkers'") is the dominant metalworkers' union in Germany, making it the country's largest union as well as Europe's largest industrial union. Analysts of Ge ...

. That's why he often was nicknamed ''Herz-Jesu-Marxist''. He trained and worked locally as a toolmaker for

Opel Opel Automobile GmbH (), usually shortened to Opel, is a German automobile manufacturer which has been a subsidiary of Stellantis since 16 January 2021. It was owned by the American automaker General Motors from 1929 until 2017 and the PSA Grou ...

from 1949 to 1957. He was engaged in the factory as a youth representative. During this time, he was a founding member of the local Boy Scouts affiliation, the

Deutsche Pfadfinderschaft Sankt Georg The Deutsche Pfadfinderschaft Sankt Georg (DPSG, ''German Scout Association Saint George'') is the largest of Germany's many Scouting organizations. The Catholic association has about 95,000 members of both genders.http://www.dpsg.de/dpsg/zahle ...

. In 1961 he passed his Abitur at an

Abendgymnasium An Abendgymnasium or "Evening Gymnasium" is a German class of secondary school for adults over the age of 19 which allows them to gain the Abitur. Classes are usually held after 17:30 at night, although some classes may be held in the mornings f ...

in Mainz, thereby obtaining the university entrance qualification. He studied German language and literature, history, philosophy and theology at the

University of Bonn The Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (german: Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn) is a public research university located in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the ( en, Rhine U ...

and

University of Cologne The University of Cologne (german: Universität zu Köln) is a university in Cologne, Germany. It was established in the year 1388 and is one of the most prestigious and research intensive universities in Germany. It was the sixth university to ...

until 1967. One of his teachers was

Joseph Ratzinger Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

. In 1967, he received his

doctorate of philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

(PhD) in Bonn with the dissertation ''Willenslehre und Soziallehre bei Ferdinand Tönnies. Ein Beitrag zum Verständnis von " Gemeinschaft und Gesellschaft"''.

Career

From 1977 to 1987 Blüm was chairman of the

Christian Democratic Employees' Association The Christian Democratic Workers Association (''Christlich-Demokratische Arbeitnehmerschaft'') (CDA)Gerd-Rainer Horn, Emmanuel Gerard, ''Left Catholicism: Catholics and society in Western Europe at the point of liberation, 1943-1955'', Leuven Univer ...

. He was a member of the CDU federal executive committee from 1969 to 2000. He was chairman of the CDU of the state of

from 1987 to 1999. Blüm was a member of the

for the CDU from 1972 to 1981 and from 1983 to 2002. From 1981 to 1982 he was Senator of Berlin. He was vice chairman of the federal CDU from 1981 to 1990 and again from 1992 to 2000. Blüm was Federal Minister for Labour and Social Affairs from 1982 to 1998. As minister, he was responsible for reforms and changes in the pension system. His greatest political success was the introduction of

long-term care insurance Long-term care insurance (LTC or LTCI) is an insurance product, sold in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada that helps pay for the costs associated with long-term care. Long-term care insurance covers care generally not covered by health ...

(''Pflegeversicherung'') in 1995, after those reform plans were hotly and controversially debated in the Bundestag.

Political positions

Blüm adhered to Christian values and belonged to the left wing of the generally centre-right CDU. Blüm was strongly influenced by the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

social philosopher

Oswald von Nell-Breuning Oswald von Nell-Breuning (8 March 1890 – 21 August 1991) was a Roman Catholic theologian and sociologist. Born in Trier, Germany into an aristocratic family, Nell-Breuning was ordained in 1921 and appointed Professor of Ethics at the Sa ...

, one of the founders of the modern Catholic social teaching who lectured in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

. Nell-Breuning taught Blüm about the main three pillars "subsidiarity", "solidarity" and "charity". During his time in office, Blüm held out and pushed back against demands by fellow CDU politicians to raise the federal retirement age from 65 to 70. A popular quotation attributed to him is "Die Rente ist sicher" (loosely translated as: "Pensions are safe"), based on the governmental slogan he wielded in 1986: "Eins ist sicher: Die Rente" ("One thing is safe: pensions"). This quotation quickly gained notoriety in Germany and became a popular target for

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

, as well as a cynical reference that would be used by his opponents and critics for years to come. The politician was a fervent supporter of human rights. On a trip to Chile in 1987, he accused former dictator

Augusto Pinochet Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (, , , ; 25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean general who ruled Chile from 1973 to 1990, first as the leader of the Military Junta of Chile from 1973 to 1981, being declared President of ...

of torture. Blüm once said that "politics is a struggle". "Whoever is in search of harmony must look for another profession. (...) But if you want to change something, you cannot please everybody." KAS-Blüm, Norbert-Bild-6629-1

Core issues of his politics were

social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...

and the fight against

unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for Work (human activity), w ...

. For Blüm, "the little people" were important, which is why he tried to prevent a division of society into rich and poor with his politics. He saw social peace threatened by the

Agenda 2010 The Agenda 2010 is a series of reforms planned and executed by the German government in the early 2000s, a Social-Democrats/ Greens coalition at that time, which aimed to reform the German welfare system and labour relations. The declared objecti ...

that was later passed by the German government. Blüm was an outspoken critic of

Scientology Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It has been variously defined as a cult, a business, or a new religious movement. The most recent published census data indi ...

. As a consequence, he was targeted by Scientology advocates, who would claim that the organization was a victim of religious

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...

in Germany. Despite his good relationship with Helmut Kohl, Blüm criticized his handling of the

CDU donations scandal The CDU donations scandal was a political scandal resulting from the illegal forms of party financing used by the German Christian Democratic Union (CDU) during the 1990s. These included accepting hidden donations, the non-disclosure of cash do ...

. After his departure from the Bundestag in 2002, he continued to comment on political issues publicly. Because of his criticism of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

in the

Middle East conflict This is a list of modern conflicts in the Middle East ensuing in the geographic and political region known as the Middle East. The "Middle East" is traditionally defined as the Fertile Crescent (Mesopotamia), Levant, and Lower Egypt, Egypt and ...

, he was sometimes accused of

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

, which he rejected. In 2016, he criticised the CDU's refugee policy because of the cold-hearted discussion about refugees. During the refugee crisis, the former minister visited the Greek refugee camp

Idomeni Idomeni or Eidomene ( el, Ειδομένη, ) is a small village in Greece, near the border with North Macedonia. The village is located in the municipality of Paeonia, Kilkis regional unit of Central Macedonia (Greece). The village is built a ...

in 2016 and heavily criticized the EU's treatment of refugees ("This kind of brutality is unworthy of European culture"). Out of solidarity he slept one night in the

refugee camp A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displaced peo ...

. In 2016 he opposed an unconditional

basic income Universal basic income (UBI) is a social welfare proposal in which all citizens of a given population regularly receive an unconditional transfer payment, that is, without a means test or need to work. It would be received independently of a ...

, on which

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

held a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

at this time. It would be "unfair" and an "attempted escape from welfare state responsibility".

Personal life

Blüm married Marita Blüm (née Binger) in 1964. The couple had three children, a son and two daughters. Blüm was a practising

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

. After

blood poisoning Sepsis, formerly known as septicemia (septicaemia in British English) or blood poisoning, is a life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage is foll ...

in 2019, Blüm became paralysed in his arms and legs. He commented in a guest article for the German weekly ''

Die Zeit ''Die Zeit'' (, "The Time") is a German national weekly newspaper published in Hamburg in Germany. The newspaper is generally considered to be among the German newspapers of record and is known for its long and extensive articles. History The ...

'' in March 2020 about his new life in a wheelchair due to his paralysis, in which he compared his position to that of a puppet whose strings were pulled so that its parts dangled incoherently in the air: "Like a thief in the night, disaster broke into my life in the form of insidious blood poisoning". Blüm died in Bonn on 23 April 2020.

Other activities

* Member of the Advisory Board of the Hans Böckler Prize of the City of Cologne * Green Helmets, Member of the Board of Trustees *

Bonn Minster Bonn Minster (german: Bonner Münster) is a Roman Catholic church in Bonn. It is one of Germany's oldest churches, having been built between the 11th and 13th centuries. At one point the church served as the de facto cathedral for the Archbishopric ...

, Member of the Board of Trustees * St. Maria zur Wiese, Member of the Board of Trustees *

, Member (since 1949)

Awards

* 2000:

Münchhausen Prize The Münchhausen Prize was instituted in 1997, the 200th anniversary of the death of Baron von Münchhausen. It is awarded in May each year in Bodenwerder, the Baron's hometown, for special talent in the art of speaking or presentation, either in ...

* 2001:

Leipzig Human Rights Award The Leipzig Human Rights Award is an honor given by the European-American Citizens Committee for Human Rights and Religious Freedom in the USA, which recognizes "efforts towards human rights and freedom of expression in the USA" and actions agains ...

* 2005:

Leopold Kunschak Prize The Leopold-Kunschak-Prize is awarded annually since 1965 by the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) for distinguished works on the areas of Human sciences, Social science and Economics. Further, complimentary awards are awarded. The prize is named aft ...

Notes

References

External links