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From a model socialist city in eastern Germany to the European Capital of Culture 2025: Chemnitz faces both a challenge and a great opportunity. The city of 250,000 inhabitants, once an industrial metropolis and renamed "Karl-Marx-Stadt" during communist Germany, repeatedly made headlines after the fall of the Berlin Wall due to right-wing extremist marches and racist and xenophobic attacks. As the European Capital of Culture 2025, Chemnitz is now striving to transform its image by promoting a new intergenerational and ethnic coexistence through cultural projects. Chemnitz has 10,000 students from 90 countries and a lively music and club scene. It also has one of the largest Indian communities in eastern Germany. DW reporter Shabnam Surita, born in India, tours the former socialist city and meets foreign students and artists. Can the city change its image through culture? #dwmagazine #culture.21 #chemnitz