Germany’s Anti-Blackness Crisis
It’s painful to write this because in my mind, the Germany I remember from years ago was always a welcoming place. Of course there were always problems, but I remember Germany as a country where people were actively working to overcome their tragic history of racial supremacy and exclusion. Thanks to various social and economic crises (driven primarily by capitalism and imperialism), it appears that Germany is sliding backwards into tribalism and demonization of racialized minorities. Refugees, immigrants and racial minorities are now being scapegoated as the cause of these social and economic crises. This coincides with the growing popularity of the neo-nazi “Alternative for Germany” political party that is currently the second most popular party in Germany today. It’s a scary situation.
The anti-Blackness here in Germany has been well documented: Anti-Black racism is widespread in Germany, survey finds; Germany’s unmeasured anti-black racism problem; Afro-German Film Collective Issues Public Statement Citing Anti Blackness in Locally-Produced Films; Germany’s strange nostalgia for the antebellum American South; “Black people rarely go into the forest because they don’t feel safe there” …and these are only a few of the articles I came across. This is unsurprising when one considers the fact that Germany’s colonial history, which includes the first genocide of the 20th century committed by Germany in Namibia, is rarely discussed here. Those without sufficient social privilege and economic power are not considered worthy of being included in Germany’s very much overhyped “memory culture.”
I’ve decided to create a zine that will explore the experiences of Black/African people in contemporary Germany and this post is the first step towards manifesting this project. Of course I must begin with my own experiences here. In January I moved to Germany to be with my partner, someone I’ve had an ongoing, on again, off again relationship with going back to 2005. My first clue as to the depth of the anti-Blackness crisis here was when he informed me that his mother was “a little bit racist” and might not be terribly thrilled that we were planning to get married. “Can you make sure to let her know our plans?” I asked him, not wanting to arrive and find myself in a bad situation. He assured me that he would, but I found out later that he actually had only told her we were dating. He showed her a picture of me and her response was, “Oh, he’s not so dark.” Um, what? Of course the underlying issue was the family business and whether or not I was “good enough” to marry into the family. As it turns out, I was not.
After the relationship totally imploded thanks in large part to his racist mother and his police-loving friends who hated my politics, I came to Berlin looking for like-minded people and those with shared values. While staying in a sublet in the home of a guy who was a serious leftist (pro-Palestine, Karl Marx and Mao posters on the walls), I asked him if he knew of any leftist spaces where I could find some solidarity while I looked for a longer term housing option (an uphill battle in totally gentrified and landlord-friendly Berlin). This is how I found myself at Rote Insel (Red Island), a housing project that is part of a constellation of former squats founded by radical housing activists in the late 70’s and early 80’s. The aesthetic of the building certainly fooled me. Graffitti everywhere, radical signage, grungy, certianly giving the appearance of a place outside of the mainstream.
But when there was a misunderstanding over my cat coming to stay with me the true colors of this gentrified, anti-Black place made themselves known. Basically what happened is that due to some failures of communication, some people here were unaware that I was bringing my cat. This supposedly was the catalyst for the absconding of one antisocial cat living here. I found myself in what they call a “plenum” here, a bi-weekly house meeting where they discuss what’s happening in the space. In this meeting I was attacked and accused of subterfuge and trying to “sneak” the cat in even though I literally told two people here about my plans. One issue seems to be that I didn’t bow down and grovel before them with sufficient gratitude. After I began keeping my cat inside, the other cat returned and the woman who owns the cat was fine dropping the issue, but several other people here refused to let it go, escalated their nastiness, and were insistent that I must leave, even though other guests have been living here for quite a long time. Below is my response to this plenum. Part two of this with more info on the zine will be on the way soon, so stay tuned!
Thomas Weisbecker, Petra Schelm, Benno Ohnesorg, Georg von Rauch: names of militant leftist activists killed by police during Berlin’s student movement of the 1970’s, the movement that led to the founding of housing projects like Rote Insel. I wonder what these freedom fighters would have to say about what’s going on in Berlin’s so-called leftist spaces today if we could somehow contact them. It’s clear what’s been happening here since those times: stagnation, degeneration, capitulation, gentrification.
I was not invited to the group chat that other guests living here were invited to, so I’m communicating with people this way. This is a response to the Rote Insel plenum that will be part of a zine collecting the experiences of Black people in contemporary Germany. And believe me, it’s not a pretty picture. Berlin is the city where European powers divided Africa amongst themselves; Germany committed the first genocide of the 20th century in colonial Namibia, and skulls and bones from that time period are still resting uneasy in respectable German institutions. Yet the genocidal colonial era that greatly enriched Germany is not a topic of conversation here. No national commemoration, no museums, no memorials. This lack of respect and attention towards Germany’s colonial history is directly connected to the fact that every Black person I’ve spoken with here has multiple shocking stories of experiencing blatant racism. And the mean-spiritedness and lack of empathy is getting worse with the increasing popularity of the racist and xenophobic neo-nazi AfD party.
When I look at the fact that an African refugee was sleeping on a guest couch here at Rote Insel for years without being offered a room, while watching other people get rooms in this 95% white space, I can’t help but to think that it would be better if this place were torn down and turned into a dog park. Even more grotesque is the fact that some people here engaging in racist behavior are claiming to “not see color” and are using feminist jargon to disguise their anti-Blackness and provide cover for the fact that they are privileged gentrifiers. I’ve seen this all before and it’s painfully cliché.
The misunderstanding with my cat could have been easily solved if people had approached me with respect, like a human being. But acting that way doesn’t seem to be a part of German culture. I told people when I first got here that even though I’m from Amerikkka, I’m not here as a tourist.
My experiences with Germany goes back to 2005 when I arrived in Frankfurt am Main with $5 in my pocket. My decision to move here this year wasn’t a result of inviting myself to Germany. My ex-partner, who I’ve known for years, invited me here and then proceeded to act like a piece of shit and try to control me and take advantage of the situation after I had already rearranged my life to move here. Why is it that here in supposedly progressive and forward thinking Berlin I’m finding the same stupid, weird, irrational and aggressive behavior that I’m trying to escape from back “home” and in my past relationship? Obviously a rhetorical question.
This ridiculous “deadline” that I was given to move out will be disregarded. After seeing the power trips, the reveling in kicking someone when they’re down, and the narcissistic, self absorbed narrowmindedness and bullying I certainly do not want to stay here, but I am not moving on until I have found another place or decide to go back to the States. And if you don’t like it you can come find me and share your feelings, but it won’t change anything. A gentrified, anti-Black space doesn’t deserve any respect in my opinion and I can’t wait to get away from here ASAP. I’m only still here in Germany to work on my art project which is connected with another historical reality that Germans refuse to accept — their responsibility towards the Palestinians who are suffering immensely as a result of people’s nazi grandparents forcing Jewish people out of Germany and committing genocide against them. But few here care about that the same way almost no one cares about German colonialism and Namibia. Yet Germany is still enmeshed in a colonial mentality, as we can see from the treatment of Black people and other minorities here.
Rote Insel could be a wonderful space of organizing and solidarity with social movements and marginalized people. But before that can happen this house needs to be cleaned, and I’m not only talking about the roaches crawling around here in the guest area. The petty tyrants, the TERFs and the “I don’t see color” weirdos need to either leave or be stripped of their power here. If you decide to live here and accept asshole behavior, their “process,” and their concept of “ordnung,” you are complicit in perpetuating oppression and helping Germany to go down the toilet (again). Berlin used to be a cool and welcoming place. What happened?
Lastly, for anyone thinking “who do you think you are, go back to where you came from, mind your business,” etc, etc — this is my business, and not only because of my nearly 20 year relationship with Germany. I’m a serious activist who cares about solving social problems and I’m in the business of confronting systems of power and privilege. If you care to know, you can learn more on my website: ronwhyte.com
