Anti Racism Workshop 2020

One of the topics that is currently most discussed in public discourse is racism. Coexistence in Germany is also strongly influenced by it. Statistics show that the number of verbal and physical attacks caused by racism is increasing. But how is it dealt with? How can you counter this? And most importantly, how do the youngsters feel about it? We asked ourselves these questions and decided to organize a workshop on the subject of anti-racism. Racism is a complex issue that is unfortunately not perceived as such by the majority of society. The aim was to give the young people a well-founded insight into the systematics and structures of racism, to empower them and to give them possible solutions. Accordingly, we dealt with the following questions during the workshop.  

•       How are forms and levels of discrimination anchored in society?

•       What exactly does racism mean?

•       How are power and privileges distributed?

•       What can those affected do about it?

Question barometer

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To carry out the exercise, we asked the girls specific yes or no questions. To do this, we used the space available to us, with one side representing the opinion of yes and the other representing no. Some of the questions asked were, for example: Am I German? Can I practice my religion without restriction in Germany? Do I refer to myself as black?

The aim here was to identify the extent to which the experiences they have gathered so far affect thinking and acting. After each of the questions we entered into an open dialogue with the girls. It quickly became clear what remarkable personalities we were dealing with. The comprehension and understanding of the decisions and thought processes of the girls was very valuable and exciting.

Own experiences

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Then we started the next program closely related to the previous exercise.

The aim of this exercise was to bring forgotten or repressed experiences from the subconscious into the conscious. The girls should go inside and record the situations in which they were confronted in a racist manner. To do this, you should think about and take notes on the following questions.

•       In which situations did you experience racism yourself?

•       Describe the situations? How did you determine that it was racism? What more do you have

        Need information? How did the situation feel?

•        What could you do? What have you done? What kind of support would you have needed?

Here the girls could share their private experiences and above all talk about their feelings.  Finally, we dealt with the term racism by definition and had a very emotional conversation on the subject of "What does racism do to us". It is important to talk about such events. However, it is much more important to be aware of the resulting consequences. How do you feel after such attacks or experiences? Does it change anything about your self-confidence or character?

It quickly became clear that these young people had to be motivated! Motivation does not have to give up, but to keep going.  

We succeeded in implementing the project very well. We found that out on the basis of the feedback round at the end. The girls found the workshop very informative, touching and, above all, helpful. It felt good for them to learn that you don't have to overcome these hurdles on your own. They are much more aware that they have a strong community behind them that catches and supports them.