Translation of Green Party in Kaarst Statement by Julia and Sharon

Official Statement

Background:
The Greens launched their poster campaign "There is only one reason to vote black" at the beginning of August 2009 as part of the "G51 - Time for Green" campaign in the town centre of Kaarst. It is part of a poster series that has been developed in cooperation with the agency Ocean8 and which is limited to this area.

Simultaneous to the "G51" campaign, the main goal of the Green Party's Kaarst office has been to break the absolute majority of the CDU (Christian Democratic Union). The "G51" campaign marks the preliminary stage of the regional elections and has been running since June 2009.

The "G51" campaign has hinted at the need to break the CDU majority in an abstract way. The current poster series aims to make this goal even more explicit, with the use of the motto "there is only one reason to vote black". Also this statement is intended to call upon people to vote Green instead of Black.

Contrary to opinions of certain individuals, there was no intention to make use of racist images through the depiction of dark-skinned buttocks. Similarly, with the choice of female buttocks there was no intention to make use of sexist images. The poster portrays two women hugging each other.

The Green Party in particular have politics which stand out for their commitment to tolerance, Weltoffenheit and equality. Topics like integration as well as "Women's political issues" are at the core of our work. The criticisms we have received regarding the racist or sexist nature of the images on our poster are therefore not teneble. If someone should have this impression we can only contradict them by refering to our principals. Indeed, this poster could be seen to be "anti-racist" since we have received exactly this feedback from people with a migration background.

We certainly agree that the poster "there is only one reason to vote black" is a provocative element in the election campaign. It is not intended to hurt anyone's feelings. It is intended to raise awareness of Green politics, what the Green Party stands for and the election goal ("G51"). Furthermore, it should shake people up and it provides a stark contrast to the posters of the other political parties, which tend to use standard images and tired slogans for their campaigns.

Alongside the well-grounded contents of the Green political agenda, the party stands for "sassy" ideas, innovation and - occasionally - unconventional election campaign methods. This poster represents a contribution to this.




Explanatory notes:
* CDU is the Christian Democratic Union - equivalent to the Conservative Party in the UK / Republicans in the US
* Black is the official colour of the CDU.
* Weltoffenheit is a German concept that is meant to symbolise inclusiveness, multiculturalism and cosmopolitanism.

(Translation by Julia Caroline Brilling & Sharon Dodua Otoo)

Death to racist German bullshit!!!!

This ad campaign was released by the Green Party in Germany. The caption on the picture says "the only reason to vote black". The article I'm linking is a response by derbraunemob.info (the brown mob), a media watchdog organization run by members of the black community in Germany. Their title is "a reason not to vote Green". In Germany, major political parties are known by colors: red, green and black as opposed to republican, democratic and green like here in the US. I can't translate the entire article but the picture says alot about how overtly racist the media in Germany is. Phuckers! Death to racist bullshyt! I'm so sick of it!

It's been a long time, I shouldn't kept you...

Without an update...

Hello world, it's Floweasy here, writing letters to you.

I was in Berlin in February and spent some time in the lab with Frank, Jörg and Khabo. Check out the brilliance we channeled here. If you enjoy Common and can also get down with the Stanky Leg, "dissect the jive" is for you. Q and I are gonna be working on the video to that soon.

I'll be in ATL until Tuesday and am working on something top secret. Just think Fulbright Scholar meets The #1 Ladies Detective Agency for transnational talks with Oil Tycoons. Strange but oh so, Floweasy.

We'll be back with yall ASAP.

In the meantime, shake your head at this redicatardedness.

Still No Justice in Germany

I received info of this case from Tahir Della, head of ISD (Initiative of Black Germany). I'll summarize what happened below and provide a link to the film project's website in case there are any of you who can understand the German.

I'm moving beyond the cry for equality everywhere because I don't think it's a realistic goal at the moment. A more attainable objective, however, is the push for AWARENESS. Word 'em up yall.

Synopsis of the Situation:
Tibor Sturm, Afro-German hip-hop activist and educator, was attacked by 6 neo-Nazis in December of 2005 on his way home from a farewell party for a good friend in Nurnberg. He had been trained in Ju-Jitsu as a youth and was able to defend himself by grabbing an unknown object and fighting back his attackers. Tibor's martial arts training was used against him in trial to cover up the incessant racism practiced throughout the German penal system. One of his attackers was badly injured and Tibor was convicted and sentenced to 7 months in prison. Tibor's attackers have yet to be sentenced.

Pure bullshit and fuckery at its best.

Link to film website: http://www.alptraum.be/

The Real Danger

Photo credit@: http://tinyurl.com/9z96kz

I’m trying to think of what I can do about the Middle East
From my comfort zone
Here in the West
Where buildings fall but not near me
Where I can tune in to bombs dropping, imagine the bodies decapitating and view the demise of the world online
As if I were watching Willie Wonka or Sponge Bob on television
The War in Gaza is really a looking glass from my position
If I close my eyes hard enough I can even shake the ball and imagine snow falling
That is how far away I am from what is happening
This is how detached I feel from the danger
And thus how dangerous it is to be detached from the world
Because even asking the question of what can I do means I cannot tap into to what needs to be done right now fast enough to do it right now
And that’s not good
Because in war
You are either fighting the other side or spectating
And gazing is just as guilty as not giving a damn
And not giving a damn is a crime in Universal law
Even the fences, trenches and blockades that separate the perspectives are temporary and are at some point engaged in battle
No thing can be neutral in WAR
Yet in America we seem to be Aliens
Moving in and out of planet and celestial status when it suits us
When there is oil to be had or domino effect to be thwarted
And when not
Then who cares about Darfur? Or Gaza? Or babies who never see the world from the “human” perspective because of the “hefty price tag” of their native fathers rocket launching sins
They lose limbs before they ever get to walk upright
And never ball a fist to protest the damage done to their chances at life
What one can do should not be thought of in recipe terms
Adding milk and eggs and baking for 45 minutes
We have to start re-imagining what can be done and by all means doing something.
Anything.
Screaming randomly in the street.
Sending emails that say only STOP WAR
Writing letters, poems, short stories or fragmented sentences to our families that explain why we should at least think about the innocent affected by WAR
Even if we never give a damn
But at least give a thought
Because if it were us and it could very well be one day soon
We would want to know that somewhere in the world someone would be thinking of us while we lay dying
in a hospital in harm’s path
I want someone to think of me when I’m in trouble
And I want them to do something
Whatever is
I just want them to do something.