Waldschlösschen Academy

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Waldschlösschen

The Waldschlösschen Academy is an educational institution near Reinhausen in Lower Saxony, between Göttingen and Heiligenstadt .

The house and its history

Aerial view of the academy

In 1981 the monument , which was built in 1904 as the "Kurhotel Waldschlösschen" and was vacant at the time, was taken over by the founders as the seat of the educational facility, initially known as the "Free Conference House Waldschlösschen". In 2000 the name was changed to "Academy Waldschlösschen". With the opening of the inner German border - five kilometers to the southeast - the Waldschlösschen moved geographically from 1989 to the center of Germany. In 1990 and 2008 the old building was expanded to include two more seminar and accommodation houses. Since 2003, its sponsor has been the non-profit Academy Waldschlösschen Foundation established by its founders Rainer Marbach and Ulli Klaum. Since 2000, the institution has been state-approved under the Lower Saxony Adult Education Act and - like the other 22 Lower Saxony folk high schools - has a budget in the state budget.

meaning

Teachers' meeting 2009

Even if the work of the Waldschlösschen Academy was not limited to the target group of gays and lesbians from the start , it was founded primarily as a "gay adult education center" - as it emerged from the German gay movement in the 1970s. Since then it has developed into a nationwide center for encounters, networking and qualification of emancipatory LGBT * I ​​work (e.g. for teachers, lawyers, theologians, gay fathers and gay, gay-lesbian and queer AStA departments at German universities and trans * active and in cooperation with Intersexuelle Menschen eV). It is impossible to imagine the history of the German gay movement without it. Ralf König mentions the Waldschlösschen several times in his comics, for example as the setting in “Beach Boys” (Rowohlt 1989, ISBN 3-499-13457-8 ).

The academy's “ queer ” self- image , which grew out of the criticism of heteronormativity, is shaped by the idea “that identities , norms and values ​​should not be taken for granted or“ natural ”, but rather as socially determined,“ constructed ”and to be reflected on anew are to be negotiated. ”The work of the Academy“ is supported by

  • the belief that all people equal rights and are in the distribution of influence and design of power in society to participate can,
  • respect for diversity and diversity of lifestyles and sexualities,
  • solidarity with the excluded and discriminated against,
  • questioning the rule of heteronormativity ,
  • the conviction of the high value of self-organization and personal responsibility. "
Thinking space names and stones by Tom Fecht , part of the Memoire nomade project

The academy is also important for AIDS work in Germany. She initially met the challenges of the AIDS crisis of the 1980s through the nationwide network of AIDS organizations, which led to the establishment of the Federal Association of German AIDS Help , with which she has been working as an educational partner ever since. In addition, since 1985 it has developed a training program for full-time and voluntary employees of AIDS-Hilfen and promotes the encounter, further training and self-organization of people with HIV and AIDS from all population groups. The former Federal Minister of Health and President of the Bundestag Rita Süssmuth said: “The Waldschlösschen is important to me because people affected by AIDS receive vital support here. People meet people, that makes a decisive contribution to a positive lifestyle. ”The thinking space project Names and Stones , an art installation in the outdoor area of ​​the Waldschlösschen with the names of people who suffered from the consequences of AIDS died. It is supplemented annually.

The importance of the Waldschlösschen Academy as a conference center for the LGBTIQ * movement, as a shelter and as a place for networking and also for self-discovery became particularly clear during the Corona epidemic. Like many educational institutions, the Waldschlösschen Academy was forced to temporarily cease operations and educational offerings as a result of the ban on contact and the lockdown. As a result, the house ran into financial difficulties due to the lack of income and partial funding from federal and state funds for the educational offers. Thanks to an appeal for donations initiated by the company's team, more than 70,000 euros were raised within a few days under the motto “Waldschlösschen must stay”. A not inconsiderable part of these donations consisted of small amounts from private individuals.

Educational program

Orchestral rehearsal

The seminar program of the educational institution is aimed at people from all walks of life. It lists offers in the areas of “social engagement and self-help”, “lifestyle and health”, “science, art and language” and “further training in a professional context” and receives its “special profile through offers

  • to gay and lesbian, to bisexual, to queer ways of life,
  • for people with HIV and AIDS and their partners,
  • to qualify for voluntary work, especially for people who are committed against homophobia and in AIDS relief work,
  • to deal with scientific research results with regard to the main focus of the academy ”.

In its educational work, the academy cooperates with people, groups and networks who are committed to combating homophobia, trans * and inter-hostility, racism and hostility towards migration . Initiation and promotion of self-help and networking of civil society structures play a central role. The program also offers extra-occupational training, especially for people in social professions (such as working with the disabled, anti-gay behavior in sport, sexual education for diversity).

“The Waldschlösschen Academy stands for the acceptance of sexual and gender diversity and promotes their visibility and social participation in its educational and networking work. Her educational work with an intersectional approach serves to strengthen self-confidence, gender self-determination and identities and offers an open space for reflection on their historical and social conditionality, the criticism of the prevailing heteronormativity and inequality in our society. With the model project "Acceptance for Diversity - Against Homophobia, Trans * - and Inter * hostility", which has existed since 2015 in the federal program "Live Democracy!" of the Federal Ministry for Family, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, the Academy is striving for a society-wide alliance for acceptance of diversity - across the board, initially primarily in Lower Saxony. "

In addition to its own seminars, there are numerous guest conferences, primarily in cooperation with universities, authorities and social institutions. Every year around 6,000 participants with 15,000 overnight stays in 300 seminars visit the academy.

Foundation bodies

Board of Trustees 2004

Rainer Marbach and Ulli Klaum are members of the board of the Waldschlösschen Academy Foundation.

The Academy's Board of Trustees is made up of Silke Eggers (Chair), Stefan Reiss (Deputy Chair), Michael Bochow , Monika Börding, Klaus Müller, Joachim Schulte , Klaus Stehling, Renate Steinhoff, Thomas Wilde, Carsten Schatz and, as a representative of the German AIDS organization, Winfried Holz and as a guest Hans Hengelein.

The Advisory Board of the Foundation Academy Waldschlösschen include the politician Rita Süssmuth , Gabriele Andretta and Jürgen Trittin and the artists Georgette Dee , Ralf König and Andreas Staier on.

Publications

The academy has been issuing publications in two series since 1999: in the Hamburger Männerschwarm , book publications appear in the Waldschlösschen edition (2016: 14 volumes). In the Waldschlösschen-Verlag, the academy publishes in the Edition Waldschlösschen - materials books and brochures that primarily offer documentation and materials on events at the educational institution (2016: 13 volumes).

Selection of books from Edition Waldschlösschen:

  • Jean Jacques Soukup (ed.): The GDR. The departure. The gays. Attempt to take stock. Association for social and pedagogical. Work, 1990, ISBN 3-9802426-0-9 .
  • Michael Bochow, Rainer Marbach (ed.): Islam and homosexuality. Koran / Islamic countries / Situation in Germany. MännerschwarmSkript-Verlag, 2003, ISBN 3-935596-24-3 .
  • Lüder Tietz (Ed.): Understanding homosexuality. Critical concepts for psychological and educational practice. MännerschwarmSkript-Verlag, 2004, ISBN 3-935596-59-6 .
  • Michael Bochow: I'm gay and I always want to stay that way. Gay men in their third age. MännerschwarmSkript-Verlag, 2005, ISBN 3-935596-79-0 .
  • Volker Weiß :: … find the right gender with medical help? On the criticism of the medical construction of transsexuality. MännerschwarmSkript-Verlag, 2009, ISBN 978-3-939542-37-7 .
  • Andreas Pretzel , Volker Weiß (Ed.): Powerlessness and rebellion. Homosexual Men in the Early Federal Republic. History of homosexuals in Germany after 1945, Volume 1. Männerschwarm Verlag, 2010, ISBN 978-3-939542-81-0 .
  • Michael Bochow, Andreas Pretzel (ed.): I wanted it to be as normal as others. Walter Guttmann tells his life. Männerschwarm Verlag, 2011, ISBN 978-3-86300-102-5 .
  • Andreas Pretzel, Volker Weiß (ed.): Pink radicals. The gay movement of the 1970s. History of homosexuals in Germany after 1945, Volume 2. Männerschwarm Verlag, 2012, ISBN 978-3-86300-123-0 .
  • Andreas Pretzel, Volker Weiß (ed.): Between autonomy and integration. Gay Politics and the Gay Movement in the 1980s and 1990s. History of homosexuals in Germany after 1945, Volume 3. Männerschwarm Verlag, 2013, ISBN 978-3-86300-151-3 .
  • Andreas Pretzel, Volker Weiß (ed.): Conformities and confrontations. Homosexuals in the GDR. History of homosexuals in Germany after 1945, Volume 4. Männerschwarm Verlag, 2017, ISBN 978-3-86300-182-7 .
  • Andreas Pretzel, Volker Weiß (ed.): Politics in motion. The emancipation of homosexuals in the 20th century. History of homosexuals in Germany after 1945, Volume 5. Männerschwarm Verlag, 2017, ISBN 978-3-86300-203-9 .
  • Carolin Küppers, Martin Schneider (ed.): Places of encounter, places of resistance. On the history of homosexual, trans * gender and queer spaces. History of homosexuals in Germany after 1945, Volume 6. Männerschwarm Verlag, Salzgeber Buchverlage, 2018, ISBN 978-3-86300-256-5 .

literature

  • Rainer Marbach (Ed.): Waldschlösschen in the middle. A reader. MännerschwarmSkript-Verlag, 2006, ISBN 3-935596-45-6 .
  • Georg Etscheit: In the middle of the province . The Waldschlösschen Academy is the only state-recognized educational institution for gays and lesbians. In: The time. No. 1, December 28, 2006, p. 69.

Web links

Commons : Akademie Waldschlösschen  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Rainer Marbach: The "Free Conference House Waldschlösschen" 1980–1999. In: Andreas Pretzel, Volker Weiß (ed.): Between autonomy and integration. Gay Politics and the Gay Movement in the 1980s and 1990s. Hamburg 2013, pp. 34–65.
  2. ↑ a b c Mission Statement (online).
  3. ↑ Quote from Rita Süssmuth on a flyer on the website of the Academy Waldschlösschen Foundation ( memento from December 30, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  4. ↑ Waldschlösschen Academy has to stay! • #AWSmust stay! Retrieved July 10, 2020 .
  5. ↑ Website acceptance for diversity

Coordinates: 51 ° 27 '36.3 "  N , 10 ° 1' 7.1"  E