🏳️‍🌈 In the first episode of Queer Story, Meili, Phenix and Flo shed light on Germany's queer political history, from important figures such as Klaus Wowereit or Kevin Kühnert to current challenges, and discuss the importance of visibility and acceptance in politics for a fairer society.

In conversation: SPD General Secretary Kevin Kühnert, former Federal Minister Barbara Hendricks and the first trans member of the Bundestag Tessa Ganserer

We have also translated this podcast into other languages with the help of artificial intelligence so that you can listen to it in your native language:

🇹🇷 Queer Story in turkish - Queer Hikayesi - link to Spotify 🇹🇷

🇷🇺 Queer Story in russian - История “Квир” - link to Spotify 🇷🇺

🇩🇪 Queer Story in german - queer story - link to Spotify 🇩🇪

🪩 Chapter

00:00:00 Introduction to Queer History in Germany

00:02:10 Challenging Misconceptions with Friedrich Mertz

00:04:26 Historic Queer Figures in Politics

00:06:16 Unveiling Queer Stories Overlooked by History

00:08:02 Ernst Rohm's Complex Legacy

00:10:18 Breaking Barriers in Modern German Politics

00:12:46 Barbara Hendricks: Media Representation and Politician Privacy

00:15:11 Homophobia and Progress in Political Circles

00:17:33 Visibility Challenges for Lesbian Politicians

00:20:13 Kevin Kühnert: Queer Perspectives in Political Leadership

00:22:35 Impact of Public Outings in Politics

00:28:23 Trans and Non-Binary Politicians' Visibility

00:31:48 Tessa Ganserer: Support and Struggles for Trans Politicians

00:34:05 The Personal Costs of Coming Out in Politics

00:37:10 Long-term Impact of Public Outings

00:39:23 Reflections on Diversity in Politics

📔 Summary of this episode

In the first episode of Queer Story, Meili, Flo and Phenix take you on a captivating journey through Germany's queer political history. This episode highlights the significant contributions and challenges of queer life in politics, from the Weimar years to the present day. We begin with an introduction to the historical significance of queer personalities such as Klaus Wowereit, the first openly gay mayor of Berlin, and then broaden our view to include lesser-known but equally influential figures. A particular highlight is the interview with Kevin Kühnert, then deputy federal chairman and now general secretary of the SPD, who talks openly about his experiences as a gay politician.

The episode also looks at the darker times in German history, such as the Weimar Republic and the Nazi era, when queer people were subjected to extreme persecution. We speak to Barbara Hendricks, former environment minister and member of the Bundestag, who shares her views on coming out in politics and dealing with homophobia in the Bundestag. Phenix has an inspiring conversation with Tessa Ganserer, one of the first trans women in German politics. Ganser talks about her personal challenges and achievements and how the landscape for transgender people in politics is slowly changing.

This episode of Queer Story offers not only deep insights into the struggles and successes of the queer community in politics, but also reflections on the importance of visibility and acceptance in today's society. It becomes clear that despite progress, the queer community continues to face many challenges and that politics plays an important role in shaping a more inclusive society.

🎙️ About

Queer Story is a production of BosePark Productions from Berlin. This podcast was translated with the help of artificial intelligence so that you can listen to the episode in your native language. We originally recorded it in 2021, then only in German. We really wanted to try out the possibility of speaking with our voices in your language. So bear with us if we still have an awkward way of speaking sometimes. We are very interested to hear what you think. If you have any comments or questions, please write to us at [email protected] 

🏳️‍🌈 BosePark Productions GmbH 2024

www.bosepark.com