SPECIAL: BLACK PEOPLE IN GERMANY

Afrozensus: Measuring anti-Black Racism and Discrimination in Germany

While speaking at the opening of the People of African Descent (PAD) Week Germany on 28 November in the Bundestag, Goran Buldioski, co-director of Open Society Initiative for Europe, called for more data on the experience of Black people, including on racism and discrimination. That is precisely the objective of a unique project, presented at one of the workshops on the …

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Black People demand Equal Rights in Germany at historic congress

The historic People of African Descent (PAD) Week Germany ended on Saturday in Berlin with workshops and panel discussions on the situation of Black people in the country. Organised by Each One Teach One (EOTO) e.V., a community-based education and empowerment project, PAD Week Germany, held on 28-30 November and attended by more than 250 participants, also marked the third …

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Theodor Wonja Michael passes on at 94

One of the oldest living Germans of African descent has passed on. Theodor Wonja Michael died in Cologne on Saturday (19 October), aged 94. Michael, who was born on 15 January 1925 as the youngest of four children to a father from Cameroon and a German mother, was one of the few remaining Black Germans who lived through the horrors …

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Book Review: Memories of Theodor Wonja Michael

Deutsch Sein und Schwarz Dazu” (“To Be German and Black”) is a treasure and a gift for German historiography. It is a treasure because Theodor Michael succeeds in vividly describing and analysing key events of his dramatic life in a historical and political context, covering the period from the Weimar Republic to this day.

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German government appoints Sylvie Nantcha member of federal commission on migration

The Federal Government has appointed Dr Sylvie Nantcha as a member of a technical commission on migration. The task of the 24-member commission is to identify “the root causes of flight and irregular migration” and it has until the end of next year to make concrete recommendations for action on how to tackle the issues. Flight and migration are among …

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Ghanaians in Germany – 1950s till today (Part 2)

In the second and concluding  part of his report on Ghanaians in Germany, journalist, translator and community activist Sam Atsu Nove* writes on the changes in the patterns of Ghanaian migration in the past 40 years and the contribution of the Diaspora to Germany’s and their home  country’s development. ———————————– The economic crisis of the 1970s and 1980s in Ghana …

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Vivian Timothy: Germany-based African artist with a mission

There are artists who believe their work should be assessed solely for its aesthetic qualities. This “art for art’s sake” philosophy should not be surprising as art is “the conscious creation of something beautiful or meaningful using skill and imagination”. There are others however who hold that beyond the beauty of their work, it should also send a social message. …

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Afro-Germans’ Conflict of Identity in German Society

“I’m used to not being German enough, living in this country, but not being African enough to represent Africa in Germany was a new one to me,” writes Jennifer Odusola, an Afro-German, on her experience of being considered not qualified to represent her father’s continent of origin. Thoughtless statements or comments that aren’t meant to ‘offend’ often have ways of …

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African women in Germany speak out at first-ever conference

Overcoming barriers is part of every immigrant’s struggle. African women living in Germany have been sharing their experiences in a meeting intended to boost morale and better equip them to deal with life here. Abu-Bakarr Jalloh of Deutsche Welle (DW) reports. A group of women in colourful African dresses danced and sang songs familiar to everyone present. They were neither …

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Talking about what it means to be Black in Germany

What is it like to be a Black person living in Germany? What does it mean to be excluded from your own society? Prominent guests met recently to discuss these questions and more at the launch of the new multimedia project ‘Afro.Germany’ by the German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW). “I used to want to be white,” says Jana Pareigis, …

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My view of how Africans are treated in Germany, by Bob Hooda

  The United Nations Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent undertook its first official visit to Germany from 20 to 27 February to study the human rights situation of Black people in the country. The human rights investigators met members of the Black community in five cities across Germany.Bob Hooda, an engineer originally from Tanzania who was …

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Black people in Germany tell United Nations their pains

The United Nations Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent undertook its first official visit to Germany from 20 to 27 February to study the human rights situation of Black people in the country. They met representatives of the Federal and State Governments, Members of Parliament (Bundestag), representatives of national and state-level human rights institutions, and civil society …

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International Decade for People of African Descent launched in Germany

The International Decade for People of African Descent, 2015–2024, was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly and adopted on 23 December 2013. The theme of the Decade is “People of African descent: recognition, justice and development”. The Decade highlights the human rights situation of the African diaspora worldwide and aims to fight racial discrimination and create visibility for the contribution …

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