INTERSECTIONAL ANTI-DISCRIMINATION UDK BERLIN

As students representing the Intersectional Anti-discrimination Working Group, we are writing this statement to express our concerns regarding the implications of the statement published online by the UdK, on the 10th of October.

The statement in question came as a response to the coordinated attack on October 7th, which resulted in the killing of numerous Israelis in the south of Israel, bordering Gaza. The UdK proclaimed their solidarity with Israeli students and professors at the faculties, making no mention of such a commitment to Palestinian students and professors. By doing so, the university chooses to ignore the war crimes and human rights abuses that the State of Israel has committed against the Palestinian people continuously over the last 75 years. This selective solidarity shows a blatant disregard for Palestinian life and fails to consider affected students, professors and members of the university, who are grieving the loss of family and friends in Palestine.

At a time when political rhetoric serves to obscure colonial violence, fuel racism and risks legitimising harmful stereotypes and actions, it is crucial for academic institutions like the UdK to reintroduce nuance and empathy into the discourse and ground it in a framework of social justice. As Europe’s largest art university and an institution that takes pride in its internationalist public image, the UdK has a responsibility to condemn Israel’s perpetration of a genocide against the Palestinian people. It should at the same time make it absolutely clear that the Jewish people and their religion are not to be conflated with, nor blamed for, the Israeli regime and its actions and that antisemitism has no place in the fight against oppression. 

We do not criticise showing solidarity with civilians, in fact what we criticise, is the lack thereof. Neither the UdK nor the Hochschulrektorenkonferenz (HRK), nor the Deutsche Akademische Austauschdienst (DAAD), could find a single word of solidarity for those mourning the deaths of their families and friends in Palestine. As of now, 109 people were killed in the occupied West Bank, while in Gaza, 6,547 people have already been identified among the 7,028 total casualties. Additionally, Israel’s aggression has left 19,743 Palestinians in Gaza injured and about 1.4 million have been internally displaced (at the time of publication – regularly updated numbers can be found here.) The 2.2 million residents in Gaza are being subjected to a cruel and illegal form of collective punishment.

Deprived of food, water, electricity and fuel, buried under the rubble, in constant fear of death. The Gazan population has nowhere to go. Without any available bomb shelters in Gaza, people seeking refuge were killed by Israeli airstrikes on hospitals, schools, churches, and even on the designated safe routes. (Stand 29.10.23; 16:01) Israel is currently issuing „warnings“ for the Al-Quds Hospital to be evacuated, showing their objective to continue committing war crimes, by bombarding a place of refuge. 

While this is going on, we are observing a unilateral support by the German government towards an apartheid state that is waging a one-sided war against the Palestinian population. In short, the German state is supporting the genocide in Gaza.

In Berlin, we see daily an unwavering hatred, racism and discrimination towards Palestinians and people showing their solidarity. Given the pre-existing structural racism within the German police, we are fearfully observing the criminalisation of solidarity with Palestinians, as well as the silencing of voices criticising the state of Israel, particularly in cultural institutions. The inevitable effects this has on the Arab and Middle eastern community cannot be ignored in the context of rising anti-Muslim racism and the racialisation of terrorism and daily dehumanisation of BIPOC persons.

As students, we are embarrassed by the university’s failure to fulfil its duty as an independent educational institution. The UdK uncritically adopts state lines, while far-right and fascist sentiments are gaining traction in the general public and are being embedded in the German parliament. As shared in Verso Books‘ open letter, „In the works is a citizenship reform law that allows the German state to deny visas and citizenship, and revoke residency permits, based on charges of anti-Semitism following the IHRA criteria, which deems any criticism of the Israeli state an act of anti-Semitism.“
A supposedly anti-racist university like the UdK must denounce the current state of German politics, where the Chancellor is excited to finally get to deport people „im großen Stil.“ (on a large scale).

It is necessary here, to mention the political history of the UdK, particularly its collaboration with the NS regime. This historical fact raises concerns about the repetition of past mistakes and the university’s failure to properly reflect on its history and the importance of learning from it. It is essential for universities to uphold their intellectual independence, which is why we raise the question of why educational institutions in Germany are uncritically adopting the current reason of state.

UdK students have faced challenges before regarding freedom of speech and expression. These issues are indicative of broader concerns about the institution’s commitment to a free exchange of ideas, open discourse and the fight against structural oppression within the UdK. Students have previously raised concerns about the university allowing racist and colonialist ideas to be part of the curriculum. As an internationally renowned educational institution, the UdK should actively hold up inclusivity, internationalism, and open-mindedness. They should actively promote dialogue and critical thinking as essential components of higher education. The UdK continues to fail at this.

We, as students, demand the following:

1. That the university clearly expresses that it recognises the humanity of Palestinians, and that they publicly acknowledge the harm their positioning has caused and could cause in the future for affected students.
   
2. That the UdK puts towards the German government, led by chancellor Olaf Scholz, a call for an immediate ceasefire and for Israel to lift its blockade on Gaza, allowing safe and unobstructed access to essential resources, including water, food, fuel, and medical supplies.
   
3. That the university takes tangible actions regarding anti-discrimination. This involves expanding the ‚Anti-Discrimination & Diversity‘ team and ensuring their autonomy and independence in supporting students and driving structural changes. This should come with the establishment of protections for students belonging to marginalised groups and any members of the University facing ethno-religious harassment, intimidation, and threats.
   
4. An improvement of the psychological counselling services, with a special focus on anti-discrimination, offered by the university for students. This would entail the hiring of more staff and an increase in funding.
   
5. That the university invests its resources in preventing and helping with legal emergencies for migrant students, namely fragile visa and asylum situations.
   
6. In a changing legal landscape, students and faculty members of the UdK need concrete assurances that they can exercise their academic freedom and freedom of speech without fear of expulsion, while upholding the principles of freedom of expression within the limits of anti-discrimination.
   
7. Acknowledgement of the university’s complicity and role during the NS-regime, including the mention of this history on the UdK website. This should be seen as an ongoing and evolving process that aims to connect the university’s past with current political issues, domestically and internationally.
   
8. That the university takes its role as an educational institution seriously and therefore allow and actively encourage the use of university spaces for open dialogue and debate, where concerns can be raised and discussed openly and without fear of police, bias or harassment. 
   

This statement and demands were written by the AG Intersectional Anti-discrimination.
It is a result of ongoing conversations and discussions with contributions from different students, members of the AG and new student initiatives. It has also incorporated direct feedback from Jewish and Palestinian perspectives.

SIGN HERE

Signatures so far (12.11.2023):

1. Holly Paynter, Fine Arts, UdK student
2. Sol Kräuter, Fine Arts, UdK student
3. Constanze Klar, Art in Context, UdK student
4. Leniko Sennoma, Fine Arts, UdK student
5. Line Moerath, Visual Communication, UdK student
6. Dalís Pacheco, Art and Media, UdK student
7. Damla Su Mutlu, UdK student
8. Davide Prati, New Media, UdK lecturer
9. Alisa Tretau, Art in Context, UdK MA student
10. ANONYMOUS, Architecture, UdK student
11. Melisa Altin, Architecture, UdK MA student
12. Elina Saalfeld, Art in Context, UdK alumni
13. Luisa Pohlmann, Architecture, UdK alumni
14. Chiara Faggionato, Art in Context, UdK student
15. Julia Hartmeyer, Architecture, UdK MA student
16. Tansila Osmaeva, Fine Arts, UdK student
17. Dachil Sado, Art in Context, UdK student
18. Katharina Bonengl, Architecture, UdK student
19. Jonas Diemer, Architecture, UdK student
20. Maryam F., Art in Context, UdK student
21. Elena Buscaino, UdK Alumni
22. Paula Antonia Tritto, Architecture, UdK student
23. Elis Rosca, Product design, UdK student
24. Anna Jurriaanse, Viola, UdK MA student
25. Taufiq El-Mokdad, Architecture, UdK student
26. ANONYMOUS, Architecture, UdK MA student
27. Eneko Lacalle Berasategi, Composition, UdK student
28. Anasol Michael, Fine Arts, UdK student
29. İpek Çınar, UdK student, Employee, former AStA UdK representative for Diversity and Social Justice
30. Charlotte Seebeck, Art in Context, UdK student
31. Jennifer Fink, Fine Arts, UdK student
32. Luana Teodora Closca, Fine Arts, UdK student
33. Luca Kramer, Fine Arts, UdK student
34. Janina Schwiemann, Fine Arts, UdK student
35. Chantal Merfort, Fine Arts, UdK student
36. Emily Bowden, Fine Arts, UdK student
37. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, Teaching position, UdK student
38. Tim Cox, Architecture, UdK student
39. Alessa Köhler, Fine Arts, UdK student
40. Tara Habibzadeh, Fine Arts, Student
41. Nina Kreutz, Fine Arts, UdK student
42. Miriam Döring, Fine Arts, UdK employee / student
43. Marc Hennes, Faculty Design, UdK alumni
44. Kim Bode, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
45. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK student
46. Frances Breden, Art in Context, UdK student
47. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK student
48. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK student
49. ANONYMOUS, UdK student
50. Vilte Gustyte, Sound Design, UdK student
51. Leniko Sennoma, Fine Arts, UdK student
52. ANONYMOUS, Faculty Design, UdK MA student
53. Felix Ansmann, New practice in Art and Technology, UdK student
54. ANONYMOUS, Visual Communication, UdK student
55. Paloma Schnitzer, Visual Communication, UdK student
56. Orhun Caglidil, Faculty Design, UdK student
57. Carmen Ng, Fine Arts, UdK student
58. Berkay Soykan, Design and Computation, UdK student
59. Common Ground Studio, Fine Arts, Community Organization
60. Vincent Hulme, Fine Arts, UdK student
61. Zeynep Sami, Fine Arts, UdK student
62. ANONYMOUS, UdK student
63. Seawon Park, Art and Media, UdK student
64. Philipp Dollinger, Art and Media, UdK student
65. Lea Abena Pahl, Fine Arts, UdK student
66. Francesco Corsi, Dance Context Choreography, UdK student
67. Agnes Hestholm, Drama, UdK student
68. Serena Abbondanza, Art in Context, UdK student
69. Zhenia Perutska, Fine Arts, UdK student
70. Elsa Estrella Echevarria, Visual Communication, Student
71. Pietro Lugaro, New Practice in Art and Technology, UdK student
72. Nehir Sena Görü, Fine Arts, UdK student
73. Théo Pozoga, Art in Context, UdK student
74. Anisha Gupta Müller, Art in Context, UdK student
75. ANONYMOUS, UdK Employee / student
76. Alice Dalgalarrondo, Art and Media, UdK alumni
77. Rüzgâr Buşki, Fine Arts, UdK student
78. Christian Limber, Faculty Design, UdK student
79. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK student
80. N Bisley, Fine Arts, UdK student
81. Almitra Pyritidis, Fine Arts, UdK student
82. Philipp Gschwendtner, UdK student
83. Stella Horta, Visual Communication, UdK student
84. Lea Debusmann, Faculty Design, UdK student
85. Edgar Mauser, HZT, Student
86. Hana Stojaković, HZT, Student
87. Rowan De Freitas, Art in Context, UdK alumni
88. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK Student
89. Jason Thompson, Faculty Design, UdK tutor
90. Line Skywalker Karlström, Royal Academy of Fine Arts Copenhagen, Artist signed in solidarity with the students
91. Milica Drakulic, Experimental Film, DAAD student
92. Jinran Ha, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
93. Erfan Aboutalebi, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
94. Katharina Aae, Art and Media, UdK student
95. Elis Rosca, Design Faculty, UdK student
96. Solveig Schmid, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
97. Natalia Ali, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
98. Özcan Ertek, Art in Context / Art and Media, UdK alumni / student
99. Monai de Paula Antunes, Visual Communication, UdK alumni
100. Viktor Petrov, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
101. Caroline Meyer, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
102. ANONYMOUS, Faculty Design, UdK student
103. Tanja Al Kayyali, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
104. ANONYMOUS, Fashion Design, UdK student
105. ANONYMOUS, Design Faculty, UdK student
106. Núria Carrillo, HZT, Student
107. Helene Adolph, Architecture, UdK student
108. Ernst Graefe, Visual Communication, UdK student
109. Bruno Gola, Art and Media, UdK alumni / Artistic employee
110. Dimitra Dermitzaki, TU Berlin, Student
111. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
112. Eli Steinbrenner, Fine Arts, UdK student
113. Jacopo Dal Bello, Fine Arts, UdK student
114. Forough Absalan, Art in Context, UdK student
115. ANONYMOUS, Art in Context, UdK student
116. Lina Katt, UdK student
117. Kifan Alkarjousli, UdK student
118. ANONYMOUS, Dance, UdK student
119. Helena Rauch, Fine Arts, UdK student
120. ANONYMOUS, UdK student
121. ANONYMOUS, UdK faculty member
122. Kamila Li, Dance, UdK student, Interflugs
123. Ella Walker, Fine Arts, UdK student
124. ANONYMOUS, Fashion Design, UdK alumni
125. ANONYMOUS, HZT, Student
126. Guo Chen, Faculty Design, UdK student
127. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK student
128. Yagmur Uckunkaya, Faculty Design, UdK student
129. Alienor Dauchez, UdK student
130. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK student
131. Yaser Safi, Artist signed in solidarity with the students
132. Michel Best, Visual Communication, UdK student
133. Fynn Bornemeier, Fine Arts, UdK student / employee
134. Konstantin Wloch, HZT, Student
135. Mouna Abo Assali, Art and Media, UdK alumni
136. Ana Maria Rodríguez Bisbicus, Architecture, UdK alumni / former lecturer
137. Michaela Daoud, UdK student / employee
138. Ulrike Zöllner, Visual Communication, UdK alumni
139. Simona Dervishi
140. Jan Fleischer, Fine Arts, UdK student
141. Paula Durinova, Art and Media, UdK student
142. Tarek Megahed
143. Angely Angulo Meza, Architecture, UdK student / employee
144. ANONYMOUS, Visual Communication, UdK alumni
145. Pablo Santacana López, Art in Context, UdK alumni
146. Karla Yumari Royal, Architecture, UdK student
147. Sasa Lolo, UdK student
148. Raúl Soria, Visual Communication, UdK alumni
149. Jasmina El Bouamraoui, KH Weissensee, Student
150. Aday Mazuela, Malerladen Kollektiv
151. Adela Lovric, ZIW, Alumni
152. ANONYMOUS
153. Lea Jungmann
154. Imane El Magraui, Medizinische Hochschule Brandenburg, Student
155. Filipe Pirl, Fine Arts, UdK student
156. Ezra V. Alvarez, Visual Communication, UdK student
157. ANONYMOUS, UdK student
158. Christian Bauer, Visual Communication, UdK alumni
159. Oliver Gudzowski, Architecture, UdK alumni
160. Caitlin Mulligan, Architecture, UdK student
161. ANONYMOUS
162. Paula Hurtado Otero, Art and pedagogy, UdK alumni
163. Sam Harper, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
164. Mariam Mekiwi, Filmmaker
165. Lou Krautien, Fine Arts, UdK student
166. Cedric Gerke, Art in Context, UdK student
167. Björn Ivan Ekemark, HZT, Alumni
168. Franziska Detering, Music, UdK student
169. ANONYMOUS, Architecture, UdK guest student
170. Camila Malenchini, HZT, Alumni
171. ANONYMOUS, UdK student
172. Kike Garcia, HZT, Alumni
173. Maud Buckenmeyer
174. Jasmina Zlatoper, Fine Arts, UdK student
175. ANONYMOUS, UdK student
176. Sharon Mercado Nogales
177. Rocio Marano, HZT, Alumni
178. ANONYMOUS
179. Camille Jemelen, UdK / HZT alumni
180. ANONYMOUS
181. Nikola Pieper, HZT, Employee
182. Liad Hussein Kantorowicz, HZT, Alumni
183. Ali Kaaf, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
184. ANONYMOUS, UdK
185. ANONYMOUS, Drama, UdK student
186. Jeanne Schmidt, Art in Context, UdK student
187. Cammack Lindsey, UdK alumni
188. Khaled Kurbeh, KH Berlin, Alumni
189. Paula Hierzi, HZT , Alumni
190. Nicola van Straaten, HZT, Alumni
191. Pauline Payen, HZT, UdK alumni
192. Cécile Bally, HZT, UdK alumni
193. Bailey Keogh, Fine Arts, UdK student
194. ANONYMOUS, Sculpture, UdK student
195. Lena Braatz, Fine Arts, UdK student
196. Stanislav Yekaterynin, Fine Arts, UdK guest student
197. Pia Li Grau, Fine Arts, UdK student
198. Katrine Staub Larsen, HZT, UdK alumni
199. Francis Kussatz, Fine Arts, UdK alumni
200. Sarah Naira Hachem Herfurth, UdK alumni, former AStA student representative for anti-discrimination
201. Paula Oltmann, Fine arts, UdK student
202. Christian Limber, Design, UdK student / employee
203. ANONYMOUS ,Fine arts , UdK student
204. Ivonne Sheen Mogollón, KHM, Media arts, student / employee
205. ANONYMOUS, Dance, UdK student
206. Muhammed Emin Acar, PD, UdK student
207. Pauline Pichavet, Fine Arts, UdK student
208. ANONYMOUS, Freelance Artist, Collaborator 
209. Ihram Fazal, Fine Arts, UdK student
210. Sevasti Giannitsi, Visual Communication, UdK MA        student
211. rahel stange, Architecture, UdK student
212. Jan Bachmann, ZHdK, Art Education, Student
213. Jane Arnison, Sound studies, UdK student
214. Zaidda Kemal, Art in Context, UdK student
215. ANONYMOUS, Weissensee, Sculptor, Student
216. Olivia Palmer-Baker , Music, UdK student
217. Lily Zlotover, Fine Art, UdK student
218. Sebastian Moske, Royal School of Art Stockholm,        Post-Master „Decolonizing Architecture“, Student
219. Lisa Kaschubat, Fine arts, UdK student
220. ANONYMOUS, Performing arts, UdK alumni
221. Camille Caradeuc, Performing arts, UdK student
222. Emma Warner, Music, UdK student
223. Julia Milz, Dffb, Film/Directing, Student
224. ANONYMOUS, Music, UdK student
225. Sara Allegro, Evangelische Hochschule Berlin, Social work,Student
226. Paula Granda Ojeda, Architecture, UdK alumni
227. Veronika Janovec, Architecture, UdK alumni
228. Barbaros Kisakol, Fine Arts, UdK student
229. Samuel Hilari Choque, Architecture, UdK alumni
230. Anika Keils, Freie Universität Berlin, Future Studies, Alumni
231. Schayan Riaz, Cultural journalism, UdK alumni
232. Caitlin Mulligan, Architecture, UdK student
233. Robin Dingemans, KKH Stockholm, Decolonising Architecture, Student
234. Jens Tiemann, Visual Communication, UdK student
235. Chris Mcwayne, UdK student
236. Ari Robey-Lawrence, Visual Media Anthropology, FU alumni
237. ANONYMOUS, Architecture, UdK student
238. Christina Harles, Art in context, UdK alumni
239. Colleen Fitzgerald, UdK / HZT student
240. ANONYMOUS, Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien, Kunst und Kulturwissenschaften, Student
241. Marlene Kager, University of Applied Arts Vienna, Graphic Design, Student
242. Germaine Png, Sound Studies and Sonic Arts, UdK student
243. Chloé Ganne, UdK student
244. Pablo Contreras Ramírez, Architecture, UdK student
245. Philippe Hoffmann, Architecture, UdK student
246. Anna Bluhm, TU Berlin, Physics, Student
247. Amirali Ghasemi, Art in Context, UdK former Student
248. Andrew Allen-Olivar, Deconolising architecture, Student
249. Júlia Puértolas Turón, Music, UdK student
250. Jonas Kuck, Faculty Design, UdK student
251. Salam Chokr, Design and Computation, UdK student
252. Finnegan Hardy, Design and Computation, UdK student
253. Sarah Omar, Design and Computation, UdK student / worker
254. ANONYMOUS, Design and Computation, UdK student
255. Mariami Kurtishvili, Architektur, UdK student
256. ANONYMOUS, HU Berlin, Musicology and Media science, student / employee
257. ANONYMOUS, HZT, Student
258. Nora Zrika, Student University Royal Conservatory of Mons, Alumni Royal Conservatory of Mons
259. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK student
260. Aleksander Filipiak, Sound Studies and Sonic Arts, UdK alumni
261. Theo Syder, Architecture, UdK student
262. Jason Thompson, Faculty Design, UdK employee
263. ANONYMOUS, Hochschule der Künste Bern, Theatre, Student
264. Marcela Moraga, Art in Context, UdK Alumni
265. Juana Jimenez, HZT / UdK student
266. ANONYMOUS, Fine Arts, UdK Student
267. Ruze Tazhibi, Fine Art, UdK alumni
268. Kika Echeverria, Sound Studies and Sonic Arts, UdK student
269. ANONYMOUS, Sound Studies & Sonic Arts, UdK guest lecturer
270. Chandrika Yogarajah, Gender and Media Studies, HU Berlin, PhD candidate
271. ANONYMOUS, Film Universität Babelsberg, Animation, student
272. Mio Kojima, Designer / Researcher / Educator