Overview
- Appearing on ARD’s “Die 100 – Was Deutschland bewegt,” the 71-year-old former Germany international spoke through tears about his past.
- He said his grandfather, a committed National Socialist, beat him because of his skin color and that he still feels the effects today.
- Hartwig recalled directing a “dumbest choir” of racist chants during HSV’s 4–3 win at Bayern in 1982, quoting fans who yelled a slur at him.
- He also described a recent moment at an Augsburg–HSV game where a spectator compared a player’s skin tone to his.
- He said the deepest wound was that no one tried to understand him, explaining his outspoken manner as self‑defense and stressing his long fight against discrimination.