Autumn changes bring new performance seasons, colorful leaves, chilly winds, and many chances to engage with the ever-expansive program of art and activism events in Berlin. Along with festivals, screenings, performances, and workshops, the first Anticolonial Month in Berlin begins on October 5th! The initiative aims to strengthen anticolonial solidarity through learning, understanding, and action. It includes a program of events across the city and many ways to get involved. Here is an AWAC-compiled list of events to keep you busy this October.
Berlin Bleibt! (Berlin Stays!) City, Art, Future
October 1st – October 5th
HAU Hebbel am Ufer, Kreuzberg
HAU opens its new season with Berlin Bleibt! a festival to connect and foreground anti-gentrification and community building movements in Berlin. Artworks, discussions, and concerts featured in the ten-day festival focus on de-privatization of housing, (post)migrant urban life, and the preservation of cultural spaces in the city while promoting urban politics towards the common good. Catch the last five days of the Festival from October 1-5 at varying locations including a former post office which has become a project space for urban action. Some events to check out include:
Mpower Girls Film Club Film Screening and Talk
Tuesday, October 1st, 18:00
Former Post Office, Hallesches Ufer 60
Short films from young women filmmakers explore urban life and housing. The films offer unconventional documentary perspectives and aesthetics and attempt to answer “How is space appropriated? What makes a house a home and what makes a city liveable? How dense is Berlin and how thin can a wall be?” Tickets are available at the box office
Werkstatt zur Enteignung und Vergesellschaftung des Wohnens
Saturday, October 5th, 19:00
Former Post Office, Hallesches Ufer 60 Nine city and renters initiatives from Berlin will join in this talk and workshop to discuss the future of communal housing ownership in the context of a recent initiative signed by 77,000 to de-privatize large real estate companies. The initiatives plan to gather stories of organization and resistance and exchange ideas for the future of self-organization in the city. This event is free and presented in german.
Fighting to Survive: Black and Indigenous Liberation Struggles Talk
Tuesday, October 8th, 19:30 -22:30
Be’kech, Exerzierstraße 14 Wedding
As part of Anticolonial Month in Berlin, activists and scholars Melody H, Gabriel Silva, Ahmed Isam, and Edna Bonhomme will speak about historical and contemporary resistance in BIPOC communities. The panel will continue, exploring intersectional approaches to colonial abolition in both local and international contexts, asking “what does freedom look like?” How do we strengthen anticolonial networks and strategies against the rise of fascism? This talk is free and open to the public, however a donation is suggested for the speakers.
Anticolonial March 2019
Saturday, October 12th, 15:00 – 18:00
Hermannplatz, Neukölln
As part of the first Anticolonial Month in Berlin, Anticolonial Berlin and many partnering organizations will gather at Hermannplatz and protest against the neo-colonialist capitalist system. The march also reclaims October 12th, a day often celebrated as Columbus Day, and a day that marks the “discovery of America” and “the founding stone of a big lie that lives on until today in forms of white supremacy, eurocentrism and ignorance.” This march is open to everyone and is a space to make your voice heard and stand in solidarity.
There is also a banner making workshop on Friday, October 11th, 18:00 – 22:00 at Siegfriedstraße 12 in Neukölln. Be sure to message the organizers beforehand if you plan on going.
How to Give Power to Climate Exiles? Public Talk
Saturday, October 12th, 15:30-18:30
Z/KU, Siemensstraße 27, Moabit
This talk features scientist Sujatha Byravan and writer Harsha Walia in conversation as they explore what should be done to support and empower climate exiles from political and humanitarian perspectives. The discussion is moderated by activist and researcher Njeri Kamau of International Women Space. The event is free and open to the public.
Everybody Can Be Everybody Can Not Be Performance Premiere
Saturday, October 19th, 20:00
Ballhaus Naunynstraße, Naunynstraße 27, Kreuzberg
Choreographer and dancer Jao Moon presents a new piece with a team of performers all about pretending. From the performance description: “Pretending is the gesture of the game of late capitalism, the gesture of survival, a gesture in the center of postcolonial engagement.” Moon’s performance examines queerness, “exoticization, appropriation, visibility and mimicry in postcolonial Berlin.” Tickets are available at the box office or online, for later performance dates.
A Queer Gaze on Thailand and Spirituality through the Cinema of Anucha Boonyawatan
Sunday, October 20th, 13:00
Aquarium Am Südblock, Skalitzer Straße 6, Kreuzberg
This panel discussion brings together director Anucha Boonyawatan in conversation with two other experts to discuss her portrayals of queer life in Thailand through her films Malila: The Farewell Flower and The Blue Hour. The panel will use the films as a basis for discussing queerness and spirituality in contemporary Thailand. This event is free and open to the public.
Cat Response – A Physical Response to Catcalling
Friday, October 25th, 17:30 – 19:30
Frauenkreise, Chornier Straße 10, Prenzlauer Berg
Cat Response is a physical movement platform designed from the experiences of women* who have experienced verbal street harassment. It is a way to express emotions and reclaim power. This workshop will consider intersecting aspects of identities and will explore strategies and experiences while taking unconscious biases into consideration. The workshop is taught by movement artist Diana Shepard and is open to anyone. It is donation-based, but register beforehand at djshepherd94@gmail.com.