Wut & Böse
Reading and Discussion

With Ciani-Sophia Hoeder (author of Wut & Böse, journalist, founder of RosaMag), moderated by Tari Weber (journalist and moderator)

The biography of Hanna Bekker vom Rath states: ‘Hanna Bekker’s reaction to the outbreak of the war is reflected in a diary entry from September 1939: “I am fighting the impotent rage + trying to maintain composure + equanimity + turning to the things that are within my sphere of obligation.” She wanted to offer her artist friends, to whom she felt committed, a private forum in Berlin to exhibit and sell paintings. The more the Nazis restricted artistic freedom, the more inventive Hanna Bekker became in her efforts to help her friends.’ (Marian Stein-Steinfeld)

Although Bekker vom Rath felt powerless in the face of the prevailing violence, she used her anger as a driving force to take the initiative. Anger can be a powerful weapon against personal and political oppression, as the author Ciani-Sophia Hoeder explains. Feeling anger is an alarm signal. The body is telling us that an injustice is happening to us. But recognising this warning is not so easy when women are structurally denied their own anger in this system. Even today, women are expected to conform to an ideal in many ways. This goes far beyond physical appearance. From childhood, girls learn which behaviours are socially acceptable for girls and women, which actions are only allowed for boys and men. This includes the feeling of anger. Women who give free rein to their anger quickly gain a bad reputation in mainstream society. But they are often the ones who pave the way for change. How have angry women shaped history and pop culture in the past? And what methods are there today to reclaim anger?

Ciani-Sophia Hoeder is a freelance journalist and founder and managing director of RosaMag, the first online lifestyle magazine for Black FLINTA* in Germany. She studied politics and journalism in Berlin and London. Her first book Wut und Böse was published by hanserblau in 2021.

Tari Weber is a Nigerian-German journalist and moderator who has worked for esteemed brands such as Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Vice, and Gruner + Jahr. She successfully moderates panels that address current topics in the fashion industry as well as issues within the Afro-diasporic society. Her commitment to dialogue and her industry expertise, particularly concerning Black creatives, set her apart.

This event is part of the series FEMINIST PERSPECTIVES, an intersectional, discursive accompanying programme curated by Sonja Eismann (editor of Missy Magazine) and Josephine Papke (author and journalist).

Public events are included in the admission fee. Pre-registration is not necessary.