Polina: “I’m returning in the knowledge that our struggle is bound to bear fruit”
Learning from one another, fighting together. That is the motto under which Munich Kyiv Queer has been inviting queer people from Ukraine to the ‘Volunteers Workshop’ in Munich for years. The focus: volunteering. The aim: to show what the community can achieve thanks to the commitment of its members! In the “Volunteers Blog”, our guests write about what moves them. Today it’s Polina’s turn: Munich’s history gives her hope for her own country. The former “City of Movement” is now one of the most queer-friendly cities in the world.
Friday marked the end of our workshop week in Munich. It was another incredibly intense day, both in terms of the emotional investment and the wealth of knowledge we shared with one another.
We came together as a group one last time to look back on the five days we’d spent here. I really hope it wasn’t our last time at the Sub!
For me, this time was an opportunity to build relationships with others. They are an incredible resource. The sense of support and understanding within our Ukrainian group, and beyond that amongst the people in Munich, has only strengthened my desire to work towards the development of queer activism back home.
Freedom must be fought for
A special part of the day was the guided tour of Munich’s most significant queer venues. Most of them are located on Müllerstraße, which people here refer to as their ‘living room’. For me, this is a symbol of complete acceptance and also a sign of how confident one can be in one’s own identity.
However, the history of this neighbourhood also serves as a reminder of just how fragile freedom can be. We learnt about the repression of queer people that began in Munich in 1933 with the establishment of the Dachau concentration camp. In 1934, following the ‘Night of the Long Knives’, the situation worsened. And today? Munich was once a centre of pogroms; now the city ranks among the top 10 most queer-friendly cities in the world. This proves that change is possible – even after the darkest of times.
A word of thanks to Uwe
I would particularly like to mention Uwe. He accompanied our group throughout the five days, and it is thanks to him that this project exists in this form at all. Uwe personally put together the schedule for our meetings with the organisations we were to visit, tailoring it precisely to our wishes and needs.
His own journey as a volunteer and his openness are incredibly inspiring. Talking to him helped me overcome my inner fear that we might lose our fight in Ukraine. The experiences of people like Uwe show that the road to equality is a long one, but every step is worth it.
Storytelling café with friends
The evening concluded with a “Living Library”. I shared my experiences as an activist in Ukraine and spoke about the draft laws we are fighting to implement, as well as the risks of regression posed by, for example, the new Civil Code for LGBTIQ* people. It was important to see that people in Munich genuinely care about us – both as Ukrainians and as part of the queer community.
My time in Munich gave me the chance to recover a little from the constant stress and shelling that are wearing me down mentally back home. I return with new knowledge, support in my heart and, above all, the belief that our struggle will definitely bear fruit. The freedom to be oneself in Ukraine – that is what makes it worth carrying on.
This is how you can help
INDIVIDUAL HELP Munich Kyiv Queer has its own fundraising campaign via https://www.paypal.me/ConradBreyer to support queer people in Ukraine who are in need or on the run. Why? Because not all LGBTIQ* are organised in the local LGBTIQ*-groups. This help is direct, fast and free of charge if you choose the option “For friends and family” on PayPal. If you don’t have PayPal, you can alternatively send money to the private account of Conrad Breyer, speaker of Munich Kyiv Queer, IBAN: DE427015000021121454.
All requests from the community are meticulously checked in cooperation with our partner organisations in Ukraine. If they can help themselves, they take over. If the demands for help exceed their (financial and/or material) possibilities, we will step in.
HELP FOR LGBTIQ* ORGANISATIONS To support LGBTIQ* in Ukraine we have helped set up the Alliance Queer Emergency Aid Ukraine, in which around 40 German LGBTIQ* Human Rights organisations are involved. All these groups have access to very different Human Rights organisations in Ukraine and use funds for urgently needed care or evacuation of queer people. Every donation helps and is used 100 percent to benefit queer people in Ukraine. Donate here
VULNERABLE GROUP And here you can find out why queer people in war need our support.
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