Berlin Stories | 19 December

Our last update for Berlin 2024. If you would like to submit an event or story in future, please drop a message in our Berlin-Stories Discord channel. Thanks to all our readers and see you next year.

Activists in solidarity with Rojava occupy Brandenburger Gate

On Tuesday, activists in solidarity with Kurdistan occupied Berlin’s Brandenburger Gate. They hung a banner from the Berlin landmark advocating for democracy in Syria and the defense of Rojava. Rojava, an autonomous Kurdish region in Syria, has been under attack by the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army. Many have been displaced by the ongoing violence. Since the fall of Assad, people in Rojava also fear losing their autonomous governance under a new Syrian government. Activists in Berlin are using public interventions to raise awareness of the situation. On Wednesday, Young Struggle and Rise Up 4 Rojava activists also occupied the headquarters of the major German media outlet ZDF urging them to recognise the Kurdish region of Rojava. 

Aid for Rojava Soli T-Shirt

The rapper and artist Ebow is hosting a fundraiser sale of soli shirts. Together with Soli Küfa Kurdistan, the t-shirts designed by Ronak Jundi, are being sold online. All proceeds benefit the Kurdish organisations Heyva Sor a Kurdistanê, Initative Frieden und Hoffnung, Kurdistan Hilfe & Medico International. You can get yours via the FC Chaya online shop.

Pop-Up Market and Fundraiser

This weekend, on 21 and 22 December, the art and community space Let’s Unsettle is hosting a Pop-Up Market and fundraiser for Gaza and Lebanon at Galerie Grolman. From 12:00 to 20:00, you can browse and purchase prints, poems, ceramics, jewellery, clothes and more from local FLINTA* and BiPoC artists. Food and drinks will also be available. The funds will be donated to support people in Gaza and Lebanon.

Film Screening: SARAH MALDOROR KONTEXT VOL. 4.

Before going on winter break, Sinema Transtopia invites you to the event “SARAH MALDOROR KONTEXT VOL. 4”. The screening and Q&A will focus on Black German realities and perspectives and will feature Drenda Akele Jorde’s documentary “The Homes We Carry”. The film portrays a family navigating life between Germany, Mozambique, and South Africa. Additionally, consider supporting Sinema Transtopia (after they suffered 100% funding cuts due to severe budget changes to Berlin’s cultural institutions by signing their open letter.

Soli Reading: Hopscotch Reading Room and Khan Aljanoub

A soli reading organised by Hopscotch Reading Room and Khan Aljanub will take place at Agit Berlin as part of the publication release of “Postcards from Staatsräson” in Solidarity with Palestine. Several authors will present their words on Saturday, 21 December, starting at 19:30. Contributors include Mohammad Abdallah, Fadi Abdelnour, Leila Boukraim and Tracy Fuad. The proceeds from the publication sales and the reading will be donated to the European Legal Support Center.  

Lecture on the liberation of Palestine at Oyoun 

After five years, Oyoun is leaving its location on Lucy-Lameck-Straße. Last weekend marked the final gathering at the venue. Last year, following events hosted in solidarity with Palestine, the Berliner Department of Culture cut their funding of Oyoun prematurely and launched a media campaign against the venue, accusing the organisers of antisemitism. Regardless, Oyoun’s co-director Louna Sbou, shared words of encouragement emphasizing the importance of decolonial and queer-feminist cultural work. The final event at Lucy-Lameck Oyoun invites you to a talk with Ramsis Kilani from Sozialismus von Unten on Friday, 20 December. The lecture will explore strategies for the liberation of Palestine. You can come by Oyoun for the last time or tune in online from 19:00.

---

Thanks to Egul Tekin for the cover photo.