In the organizer's words:

As "emancipation from above", the equality of men and women was part of the official family and social policy of the GDR. However, homosexuality was taboo, just like in West Germany. How did queer East German women create spaces in which they could love and live freely? What can we learn from their experiences for the present day, in which queer life is still under pressure, or even more so? How has the situation developed and what family images are queer people confronted with - then and now?

Elke Prinz knows what it means to shape a family outside of normative ideas. Since the late 1990s, she has been involved in the women's center Weiberwirtschaft of Dornrosa e.V. in Halle, where she is one of the board members. The association offers shelter for girls and women, is a counseling center and a place for education and encounters. Elke Prinz has helped to build up an extensive queer-feminist library there, organizes readings and represents the association in various local and state committees.

As a contemporary witness, Elke Prinz makes the situation of lesbian women in the GDR visible. She develops and supervises traveling exhibitions on women's and queer history topics - sometimes together with young people. As one of the protagonists of the documentary film Uferfrauen - Lesbisches L(i)eben in der DDR, she reports on unconventional family planning and the struggle for self-determination. In addition to a podcast series about the work of Dornrosa, she has been producing series on women's and gender equality issues for a local radio station for more than 15 years. She was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit in October 2025 for her long-standing commitment to unprejudiced, democratic coexistence.

During consultation hours at the Humboldt Forum, you can ask experts your questions directly and easily - without having to make an appointment or wait on a waiting list! The focus is on an open exchange of ideas with the audience.

- free of charge
- Language: German
- Location: Mechanical arena in the foyer
- Part of: Consultation hour: Relationships with family