Black Germans between Erasure and Tokenism
Lecture by Alice Hasters
Tuesday, March 7, 202312:00 PM - 1:30 PM (Pacific Time)
Royce Hall 236
Hasters argues that attending to the history of anti-Black racism in Germany enables a deeper understanding of German identity, racism, and antisemitism today.
The UCLA Department of European Languages and Transcultural Studies in co-sponsorship with the UCLA Center for European and Russian Studies (CERS) and Thomas Mann House invite you to Black Germans between Erasure and Tokenism, a lecture by Alice Hasters. The event will take place in-person in Royce Hall 236 on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at 12pm. Lunch will be provided. Please RSVP by March 3, 2023.
Abstract
In her lecture at UCLA, Hasters will address the central assumption that frames Black German life today: the perception that Black people are “new” to Germany. This assumption erases the fact that Black people have lived in German-speaking lands for hundreds of years. As she shows, it also allows anti-Black racism and its history to be falsely viewed as only an American or Western problem with no relation to the German context. Examining the dynamics that unfold from this skewed understanding, Hasters argues that attending to the history of anti-Black racism in Germany enables a deeper understanding of German identity, racism, and antisemitism today.
Speaker
Journalist and author Alice Hasters is a major contemporary Black German voice. Her bestselling 2019 book Was weiße Menschen nicht über Rassismus hören wollen, aber wissen sollten (What White People Don’t Want to Hear About Racism, But Should Know Anyway) led to animated public debates about race and racism in Germany.
Venue
236 Royce Hall
340 Royce Dr.
Los Angeles, CA 90095
Related Document: Alice-Hasters-Flyer-fb-qad.pdf
Sponsor(s): Center for European and Russian Studies, Department of European Languages and Transcultural Studies, Thomas Mann House