Workers' Youth Center Bielefeld

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The Bielefeld Workers' Youth Center is one of the first autonomous youth centers to be established in the Federal Republic of Germany. The Workers' Youth Center (AJZ) Bielefeld has been self-administered since its inception .

history

Ajz Bielefeld

On April 21, 1973, the "House of the Open Door" (HOT) in Poststrasse in Bielefeld-Brackwede was occupied, which was opened in March 1972 as a municipal youth center. The squatting came about because Brackwede was assigned to the city of Bielefeld by the municipal reorganization . The Bielefeld Youth Welfare Office then wanted to withdraw the home manager on January 1, 1973. For this reason, the young people developed a concept for a self-administered and independent workers' youth and schoolchildren center, which was recognized by the youth welfare office and opened for the first time on January 6, 1973. At this point in time, the AJZ did not receive any public subsidies and all decisions concerning the house were made at the house meeting (AGM).

Since the youth welfare office and the police saw a problem in self-administration, the center was closed again at the end of January. But before the HOT was occupied, information booths and a demonstration were used to advertise a self-governing JZ and an invitation to a “solidarity party”, which took place on April 21, 1973. At the party it was decided to occupy the HOT on the same day. About 300 young people held the house for five days and barricaded themselves in it. The house itself could only be reached by a ladder to the first floor. When the house was opened to the public on April 26, 1973 in order to dispel rumors that were public, the police evacuated the house. As a result, there were trials against squatters in 1974.

Since the youth welfare office did not want to negotiate with the house assembly, which now met in a pub, the "Association for the establishment and promotion of an independent workers' youth center Bielefeld-Brackwede eV" was founded in August 1973 , which was recognized as worthy of funding in December of the same year. A suitable building could also be found in the Dargel bicycle saddle factory at Heeper Straße 132, which was partially rented on May 1, 1974. The saddle factory continued to produce in the rest of the building. After the house had been largely renovated and repaired by autumn, the AJZ was finally recognized as eligible for funding in December. The funding was to be canceled less than half a year later, as the CDU applied in its election campaign to revoke the AJZ's eligibility for funding. However, the application was not granted in the autumn of 1975.

In the course of the German Autumn , the AJZ had to endure several house searches as soon as leaflets or other brochures appeared in Bielefeld in which the authorities saw a violation of § 129a StGB . However, none of the searches produced any results. In January 1978, the resolution was passed at the AGM to buy the house because the owner wanted to sell it and therefore difficulties would have arisen with the extension of the lease, which expired on April 30, 1979. Despite another campaign on the part of the CDU against the AJZ, the purchase agreement was signed in July 1978. As a result of the newly gained space, a new bar, a new event room, the new metal workshop, the cinema and the "information store stop" were created in the rooms of the now closed saddle factory.

In 1991 the AJZ was deprived of its eligibility for funding, but by this time a large part of the house, which was pre-financed by the Sparkasse, had already been paid off and the rest could be paid for by donations.

Disputes with authorities, the police and rights

In addition to the usual complaints and problems due to disturbance of the peace, there were more and more clashes with rights, who had a center in the neighboring Bleichstrasse, and the police, especially at the end of the 1980s. The high point was certainly March 27, 1987, when the residents decided to attack the Nazi center in Bleichstrasse, which ended in the police siege of the AJZ.

Since the Federal Office for Civilian Service (BAZ) regarded the deployment of civilian service providers in the AJZ as too dangerous, they should be transferred, but they refused to recognize their new offices. The civilian service could thus be kept until 1992, but it was ultimately canceled.

In August 2008 the AJZ had to pay two fines totaling approx. 1000 euros, because a concert with the band Turbostaat was held on Good Friday 2008 . This was forbidden according to the dance ban § 8 FTG.

In February 2018, the AJZ Post received a request from the Bielefeld police to remove a 23-year-old graffiti, which was sprayed by the Hamburg sprayer legend Eric in memory of Halim Dener , by March 23, 2018. According to a letter from the police, a forbidden symbol of the now banned Kurdish organization CDK (Democratic Community of Kurdistan) can be seen in the picture . The AJZ did not comply with the request. Dener was shot dead by a police officer on June 29, 1994 while sticking up posters for the terrorist organization PKK , which is banned in Germany , on Steintorplatz in Hanover. In April 2019, the board received a penalty order of 3000 euros from the Bielefeld public prosecutor for not removing the graffiti.

Current work

The AJZ gained national importance primarily through the concerts. Internationally known bands such as Turbonegro , The Unseen , The Toasters , Lesbians on Ecstasy and Hammerhead played in the AJZ.

The various workshops (metal workshop, wood workshop) can also be used. The “Antifa Café” always takes place on Mondays in the “Infoladenschlag”.

Groups in the house

Former groups and collectives

  • "Rote Socke" - football group that played in the "Wild League"
  • AJZ women's sports group
  • Song group - sang and wrote songs e.g. B. on topics like: anti-nuclear power plants, fascism
  • Theater group - played plays about the cast, youth problems
  • Residential group - mediated young people with one another who could not afford an apartment on their own and also did not want to live alone
  • KFZ-Kollektiv - was a regular car workshop in Schillerstraße, in which, however, all operators had equal rights and had set themselves the goal of carrying out repairs without the usual surcharges
  • Kulturgruppe - are now in the forum, Meller Str.
  • Cinema group - played the in-house "AJZ-Kino" on Sundays
  • Netzwerkstatt - computer group that also hosts parties
  • Rude Sounds - concert group that mainly organizes reggae and ska concerts
  • Punk rock group - Concert Group, the concerts with the most internationally renowned punk - and hardcore bands organized

Current groups

  • "Bolzenbande left outside" - current "Wilde Liga" team of the AJZ
  • AJZ Radio - non-commercial radio group in late 1994 community radio sends
  • AJZ-Druck - a publishing company with its own printing company since 1976
  • AJZ-Disco - disco group in the AJZ
  • Ladyshake - organizes concerts, themed parties, film evenings and readings in a feminist / queer context, for ladies + gentlemen.
  • Bite Back Concerts - Concert group that also offers regional bands the opportunity to perform
  • Freedom Run Concerts - Concert group for stoner / doom / psychedelic
  • club! ajz - parties with electronic dance music

literature

  • House meeting of the workers' youth center in Bielefeld: 5 years of self-administration. A documentation of the workers' youth center in Bielefeld , Bielefeld 1978
  • Author collective (ed.): 30 years of AJZ: Autonomous and self-administered: a documentation about the Workers' Youth Center / Bielefeld , Bielefeld 2003.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ on course for Turkey - Everything Kurdish is terror  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ruhrbarone , February 24, 2018@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.ruhrbarone.de  
  2. ↑ Graffiti at the AJZ is to be removed ( memento of the original from April 15, 2019 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Hertz 87.9 , February 26, 2018 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.hertz879.de
  3. ↑ Jens Reichenbach: Bielefeld AJZ suddenly has to remove 23 year old graffiti. Retrieved January 13, 2019 .
  4. ^ Autonomous Youth Center Bielefeld sentenced to 3,000 euros fine Neue Westfälische, April 27, 2019

Coordinates: 52 ° 1 ′ 19.2 ″  N , 8 ° 33 ′ 22.4 ″  E