Queer as German Folk | Queer Perspectives
Queer Life

The global queer community is as diverse as the topics that move them. Manifold are the reflections on history and perspectives on queer life today and tomorrow. We’ve gathered some critical snapshots of fluid, queer identity that are colorful, personal and surprising.

DC Dyke March
“Dyke is a History”

In protest against the commercialization of the Pride Parades, the Dyke March in Washington in 2019 experienced a new edition. More than a quarter of a century after its premiere, it is apparently time again for political statements from the queer scene.

Title image for an event on old-age poverty among lesbians

Queer Aging
We only lower our heads to look at our beautiful shoes

How do queer people plan their old age? Sabine Arnolds of the umbrella organization Lesben und Alter explains why older queer people need to be part of Pride and how we can approach one another with respect.

Preparations for the Eurovision Song Contest in Kiev 2017: Workers paint the Soviet-era monument "Arch of friendship" in rainbow colours

Secret pleasures
When the Eurovision Song Contest is a Gay Life Coach

Grand gestures, strange fashions and unlikely dramas: Every generation of gay men rediscovers their happiness at the ESC. Peter Rehberg tells of his childhood.

The stars of "Dynasty" - on German television the series was called "Denver Clan"

Queer writing as an art form
Some Notes on My Gay Feelings

“My taste in art was faggy before I could be.” William Johnson allows us to share in his development as a writer. He lives in Brooklyn and is a publisher of a literary journal dedicated to showcasing queer/gay writings.

Montreal's Stonewall
How the Sex Garage Raid Mobilized a Generation of LGBT Activists

In Montreal, following years of institutional discrimination, a broad queer movement mobilized in response to the police raid of the Garage club on July 15, 1990. What can we learn from the aftermath of this police attack on an after-hours party?

Lo Que Se Ve No Se Pregunta
Queerness and Latinidad

The Latin American history of queerness spans generations of famous representatives: Juan Gabriel, Frida Kahlo and Chavela Vargas. Liliana Macias uses the example of these dazzling personalities to shed light on the complex connections between queerness and Latinidad.

50 Years Stonewall Riots
A New York Revolt and its Consequences

New York, 1969: Drag queens, transgender people, gays, and lesbians, among them many people of color and homeless youth. The Stonewall Inn. A raid on the popular bar, but this time around the motley crew resists the police’s brutality.

Taking a look at muxeidad
Queer: No. Queer-po muxe: Yes

Next to men and women, some indigenous peoples in the Mexican state of Oaxaca recognize a third gender: the muxe. Lukas Avendaño describes his experiences with the muxeidad.

Cultural identity and queerness
In the Spirit of Beth: Queering Indigenous Space

Mixed race, Two Spirit person Nicole Tanguay on how cultural representation can be more important than queer identity.

Reflections on Toronto's Pussy Palace Raid
No-Cop Zone?

Chanelle Gallant reflects on a women's bathhouse raid in Toronto as an example of the longstanding practice of law enforcement as a means of oppression against minorities, especially in the LGBTQ comunities.

Cast of floor show at Finocchio’s nightclub, 1958

Historical Locations in San Francisco
Lost Queer Landscapes

San Francisco has over 100 years of queer history to tell. The first gay bar in town opened in 1908. Jim van Buskirk remembers the locations that laid the groundwork for the queer liberation movement.

For same-sex Marriages
Legalize it!

“And drove us into a ditch where we could only defend ourselves”: Alex Alí Méndez Díaz describes the special way who Mexico goes to enforce same-sex marriages.

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Stonewall Moments

Half a century has passed since the riots on Christopher Street in New York. Half a century in which queer people worldwide have fought for visibility, respect and equality. And half a century of personal memories that carry into the present. In short videos, different generations reflect on their Stonewall moments.

Playlist: Queer Music

50 years since the Stonewall Riots, 50 songs by queer artists: Our playlist explores the breadth of the queer music scene. The selection was curated by Mason Culkin, who is local advisor to the Goethe-Institut’s Queer as German Folk exhibition in Chicago.

#artbits
Queer As Artsy Folk

Queer Street Art is an integral part of the urban North American scene. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots and in keeping with the project Queer As German Folk, we have dedicated our blog #artbits to queer street art with its current series Queer As Artsy Folk!

Federal judges announcing verdict (excerpt)

Before the law
The German case law on queer issues

150 years of queer history in Germany: our timeline illustrates the long and arduous, still ongoing struggle for equal rights.
German case law reflects both homophobia and newly won freedoms.

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Queer as German Folk | Queer Perspectives Queer Life

DC Dyke March “Dyke is a History”

Queer Aging We only lower our heads to look at our beautiful shoes

Secret pleasures When the Eurovision Song Contest is a Gay Life Coach

Queer writing as an art form Some Notes on My Gay Feelings

Montreal's Stonewall How the Sex Garage Raid Mobilized a Generation of LGBT Activists

Lo Que Se Ve No Se Pregunta Queerness and Latinidad

50 Years Stonewall Riots A New York Revolt and its Consequences

Taking a look at muxeidad Queer: No. Queer-po muxe: Yes

Cultural identity and queerness In the Spirit of Beth: Queering Indigenous Space

Reflections on Toronto's Pussy Palace Raid No-Cop Zone?

Historical Locations in San Francisco Lost Queer Landscapes

For same-sex Marriages Legalize it!