PHOTO: © Donnern gegen Rechts

Donnern gegen Rechts - Das Festival

Name: Donnern gegen Rechts - Das Festival
Start: 2025-05-02T19:00
End: 2025-05-04T18:30
Location: Kulturbunker Köln-Mülheim

Festivals

In the organizer's words:

A political festival that opposes the shift to the right!
We at Donnern gegen Rechts say "now more than ever" and want to be loud with you!
That's why our festival will not only feature exciting workshops, inputs, information stands, an exhibition and a film, but also live music and a great party!
So: join in the thunder!

You can find the complete festival program below :)

The festival is intended to provide a framework for long-term networking and to facilitate the entry into political engagement for those of us who are wondering: But what can I do?

We want to invite all interested parties to take part in workshops and talks to get to the bottom of the question of how we can work together to make Cologne stable against the right-wing 💩 - because after the Bundestag elections is before the local elections.

We believe it is important to network with nice people, to find comrades-in-arms and like-minded people so that we can all persevere in these difficult political times! That's why there will be plenty of space to exchange ideas outside the workshops and lectures - over good food, at the party, in the beer garden or with live music.

There are only a few places available for the workshops on Saturday. So get your ticket quickly and reserve your preferred workshop! :)

Please send us an email to donnerngegenrechts@mail.de if you:

can't afford the ticket
need support, e.g. regarding accessibility (sign language interpretation, pick-up from public transport), language barriers (whispered translation into English)
want to set up a stand at the Market of Opportunities
have other ideas, questions or suggestions!

We look forward to hearing from you!

______________________________

Festival program

Accessibility and awareness: The Kulturbunker is completely barrier-free for wheelchair users. There will be DGS interpretation for all events in the plenum, and we will ask you about your needs for the workshops when you register. You can also specify pick-up from the train and support on site when registering. If we can support you in any other way, please write to us - we look forward to seeing you! In any case, there will be an awareness team on site to provide support.

Overview:

Friday

19:30 - 21:00 Opening and panel discussion
"Small demand" on the political neutrality requirement. Instrument of defensive democracy or means of exerting political influence?

The political neutrality requirement is intended to prevent state-funded organizations from acting in a party-political manner. It protects pluralistic discourse and is intended to prevent party political instrumentalization - a central element of a defensible democracy.

However, it is increasingly being used to delegitimize critical cultural and educational work. Civil society actors are coming under pressure - in terms of content and funding. Where does value-based engagement end and (supposed) partisanship begin? How do you counter attacks on democratic educational work in the name of "neutrality"?

At the start of the festival, we will discuss these questions with experts from practice and academia:

Moderation: Joanna Peprah
Keynote: Jana Sämann (University of Siegen)
Panel: Heike Herold (LAG Soziokultur), Rika Sakalak (Plenary Assembly for the Beautiful Life)

Saturday

11:30 - 12:00 Welcome and introduction
Keynote by Behshid Najafi (agisra e.V.)
"Protect human rights - strengthen resistance to the right!"

12:00 - 14:00
Workshops - Round 1 (detailed descriptions can be found below)

The Falcons: #reclaimyourveedel
Radical daughters #reclaimthestreets:
Action Art in Action (Part I)
Activist agency #reclaimsocialmedia:
No social media to the fascists: video content for Instagram and Tiktok. A practical training with Emily Laquer (Part I)
Feminist Law Clinic & PAQT #solidarity
Basic legal knowledge for queers and flinta*

14:00 - 15:30 Lunch break

15:30 - 17:30
Workshops - Round 2 (detailed descriptions can be found below)

Petershof #reclaimyourveedel
Building spaces for solidarity-based crisis management - the future of urban society
Radical daughters #reclaimthestreets:
Action Art in Action: Courage Muscle Workshop (Part II)
Activist:inside agency #reclaimsocialmedia
No social media for fascists: video content for Instagram and Tiktok. A practical training with Emily Laquer (Part II)

18:00 - 19:00
Workshops - Round 3 (detailed descriptions can be found at the bottom)

Claudia Lenden:
The Alliance for Public Health
Dorothea Winkler (actress, experiential and theater educator with a focus on communication and exclusion processes):
With-make(t) moderation? From group to community: designing spaces in a power-sensitive way
Technoscussion: Creating spaces for real connection and solidarity together
18:30: guided tour through the exhibition Now you see me Moria (30 minutes in English)

19:00 - 19:30
Joint final round
How was the day and where do we go from here against the right?

19:30 - 20:45
Pizza, champagne, chatting

Live music

20:15 - 21:00
Salomon (live music)

21:00 - 21:45
Goldfish Gerda (live music)

21:45 - 22:30
Henry Lee (live music)

party

22:30 - 00:00
Anna Cainelli (E.P.I.Q.) & C:Mone (E.P.I.Q.).

00:00 - 02:00
Midani

02:00 - 04:00
flocolores (krakelee)

Sunday

from 2 pm: political hangover breakfast:
Those who still need to talk can exchange ideas with others on the roof terrace, those who are hungry can drink coffee and snack in the beer garden of Café Toré and at 15:30 there will be more beautiful sounds for the heart and ears with "Sekt und Tränen" ❤

17:00 Film: Never alone, always together
A hopeful documentary whose protagonists firmly believe that radical change is not only possible, but necessary.

________________________

Detailed workshop program

12:00 - 14:00
Workshops - Round 1

The Falcons: #reclaimyourveedel
Radical Daughters #reclaimthestreets:
Action Art in Action: Courage Muscle Workshop (Part I)
The world needs new radical ideas and measures if it wants to solve its challenges and problems. But above all, it needs one thing: more courage! That's why we train our courage muscle together in our workshops. We teach approaches to action art and artistic activism. We talk about actions, our methods of action art, building visions and bonds and inspire people to take action themselves. Using the means of action art, we enable you to formulate your concerns and goals and develop ways to achieve them. A political, creative, activating workshop as inspiration for your own attitude.
Activist:innen-Agentur #reclaimsocialmedia:
No social media for fascists: video content for Instagram and Tiktok. A practical training session with Emily Laquer (Part I)
Hardly any other party is as successful on TikTok as the AfD and its fans. If you don't want to leave the net to them, you have to fight back. Building reach - today, this is mainly possible with videos featuring real people in portrait format. But how do we bring left-wing content and political content to Instagram and TikTok without being cringeworthy? This training is suitable for beginners and anyone who not only wants to consume content but also publish videos themselves. The content: Understanding the algorithm, creating stories, reels and TikToks, daring to get in front of the camera, video production and editing basics for beginners, growth hacking: going viral and building reach. Each participant needs a cell phone with a camera and access to a social media account on Instagram or TikTok. Social media skills and some experience in creating your own content are helpful, but not a prerequisite.
Feminist Law Clinic & PAQT #solidarity
Basic legal knowledge for queers and flinta*
In the workshop, we will work with you at various stations on the basics of law on the right to self-determination, maintenance law and sexual criminal law as well as other questions that interest you!

15:30 - 17:30
Workshops - Round 2

Petershof #reclaimyourveedel
Building spaces for solidarity-based crisis management - the future of urban society
The Petershof neighborhood project and the last 3 years of democracy and sociocultural work will be presented: The main focus here is on experiences with low-threshold meeting formats & neighborhood work as well as an exchange on how to deal with upcoming crises. To this end, we want to outline approaches for the coming years and discuss where local potential for crisis-proof networking and solidarity-based engagement lies - with committed and skeptical people - just before or when things go wrong. Finally, we want to use theses to sketch out together with workshop participants which approaches could be further developed in a typical(?!) Cologne neighborhood, where blind spots exist and which community work has a chance of success and popularity.
Radical daughters #reclaimthestreets:
Action art in action: courage-muscle workshop
(Part II) (continuation of Part I)
Activist:innen-Agentur #reclaimsocialmedia:
No social media for fascists: video content for Instagram and Tiktok. A practical training with Emily Laquer
(Part II) (continuation of Part I)

18:00 - 19:00
Workshops - Round 3

Claudia Lenden (Spokesperson of the Alliance for the Common Good Healthcare System)
"Who is the Bündnis gemeinwohlorientiertes Gesundheitssystem and what are we fighting for?"
Dorothea Winkler (actress, experiential and theater educator with a focus on communication and exclusion processes):
With-make(t) moderation? From the group to the community: designing spaces in a power-sensitive way
If you want to reclaim spaces, you first have to make them safe and inviting for everyone. But how can groups be facilitated in such a way that everyone feels heard? How do we create power-sensitive, solidarity-based structures in which people participate and take responsibility? In this workshop, we will look at inclusive facilitation, building trust and the joint development of norms and values. I will draw on methods from experiential education, theater work and the power-critical pedagogy of Bell Hooks. The workshop is aimed at anyone who leads or facilitates groups - whether in political initiatives, social movements or other contexts. We also welcome anyone who is interested in appreciative communication and wants to learn how to create spaces in which people feel heard and included. Together, we will develop practical strategies for open, appreciative and empowering communication.
Technoscussion: Creating spaces for real connection and solidarity together
How can we transform events into real encounters that connect people in a sustainable way? In our workshop, we immerse ourselves in the art of creating consciously designed gatherings that go beyond superficial experiences. Together, we will explore how spaces can be designed that promote genuine community, strengthen solidarity and provide space for socio-political discourse. Using the example of technoscussion, we will show how music, interaction and creative design can become a platform for deeper connections and collective action. This workshop is aimed at anyone who is wondering: How can we rethink encounters? How can we create places where people not only meet, but really come together? Join us and create new ways for exchange, solidarity and political discussion!
18:30: guided tour through the exhibition Now you see me Moria (30 minutes in English)
This exhibition and Instagram account Now you see me Moria is a collective act of resistance - a call to confront the consequences of Europe's failing migration policies. Through photography, storytelling, and now this talk, the project seeks to restore visibility and demand accountability.
Created by refugees and a photo editor, the exhibition raises awareness about the dire living conditions in Greece's refugee camps. By showing the reality of life in Moria, it aims to humanize refugees and inspire empathy, action, and better policies - including more humanitarian aid for displaced people. Amir, one of the co-founders, will share his personal experience of border violence, the asylum process, and the steps he has taken during this time.