Streitraum Herzkammer mit Friederike Oertel und "Urlaub vom Patriarchat"

Tired and fed up with everyday life in the patriarchy, Friederike Oertel sets off on a trip to Mexico - to one of the last matriarchies in the world. She wants to gain some distance, learn from the local women and return home with new perspectives. But even in a matriarchy, being a woman is more complicated than expected.

In Juchitán, the clocks tick differently: women take the lead within families, property is passed on from mothers to daughters, and muxes - people who are assigned to a third gender - are an integral part of social life. At the lively market, which Friederike Oertel visits with her host sister, women dominate the scene. They also set the tone at festivals. This so-called "city of women" is often described in books and documentaries as a matriarchy - a living alternative to the patriarchal system.

With a language that captures the vibrant colors and atmosphere of the place and a sensitive eye for the peculiarities of a society that lives by its own rules, the author embarks on a personal search for clues. She reflects on her womanhood, confronts her own doubts and inner contradictions, questions social role models and lets her feelings guide her. The concept of matriarchy - somewhere between an ancient idea and lived reality - shatters her previous ideas and gives her a new perspective on life as a woman in a patriarchal world.

Moderation: Emily Grunert (Head of Literaturbüro NRW)

An event in cooperation with the Düsseldorf Central Library and the Freundeskreis Stadtbüchereien Düsseldorf as part of the "Streitraum Herzkammer" series