The Left Berlin Newsletter, 21st May 2026
That was Palivision
Welcome to this week’s Left Berlin Newsletter.
Thanks to everyone who attended Palivision last week-end. We are still counting the money, but we’re pretty sure that we raised more money for refugees in Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan than in any previous years. Many thanks to all the acts, speakers and volunteers (too numerous to name) who gave their time and energy for free to make it happen.
Thanks to all the organisations and individuals who donated 31 prizes to our Palivision raffle. Some prizes were not claimed on the night. If you have a ticket with the number 62, 63, 67, 71,, 77, 78, 80, 84, 88, 90, 93, or 100 please contact us on Instagram or by mailing team@ theleftberlin.com to claim your prize.
This week it was announced that the Ulm 5 trial would not end in July as planned, but next January at the earliest. The judge has added 28 further dates, meaning a total of 40 hearings extending into 2027. This means that Vi, Leandra, Daniel, Zo and Crow will remain in prison without a verdict for nearly 16 months!
The Ulm 5 need your support. We published some tips about what you can do here. The next big court mobilisation is for the hearing on June 15th (bus leaves Südkreuz at 10am on June 14th). Book your bus ticket at common_journey_court_watch@systemli.org or from L5 Späti. Pay what you can. Nobody will be turned away for lack of funds.
Finally, the Left Berlin Film Club is back on Saturday with two films about the Black Panthers. We will be joined for a discussion by director Mohamed Benloulou and Ryan Mahan, a member of Algiers. Join us at Refuge Worldwide, Niemetzstraße 1, at 6.30pm.
This week in Working Class History - 22 May 1875: Socialist Worker’s Party founding
151 years ago this year, the predecessor of the German SPD was formed, 3 years after its founders Wilhelm Liebknecht and August Bebel were tried and sentenced for high treason. Almost immediately, the party was forced underground, before becoming Germany’s largest party in 1890. Read about the history which many in the SPD would like to forget here.
Repression in Germany
Our latest column on Repression of the Palestine movement in Germany looks at last week-end’s Nakba demonstration in Berlin, which once more faced unwarrented police violence. Read about it here.
Demonstrations in Berlin
Today at 4pm: Renovate the campus instead of studying from home. Brandenburger Tor
Today at 5pm: Say no to the WoHo high-rise! Rathaus Kreuzberg, Yorckstraße 4-11
Tomorrow at 5pm: Rally against sexist police violence. Kotbusser Tor
This week’s Events
Queering Nature is a guided tour of the Naturkundemuseum offering a queer historical perspective on nature and science. How is nature sexualised? How do researchers determine the sex of a dinosaur? What does colonialism have to do with botany and the sex of plants? Whose knowledge do we (re)present and what might remain hidden? The tour is this evening and starts at 6pm.
On Saturday afternoon Right2TheCity invites new and old friends to a picnic hang out at Volkspark Hasenheide. You can meet some of our members, enjoy a (hopefully) sunny day, and learn a bit about DWE and socializing corporate landlords in Berlin. We’ll have a communal craft to do as well! It starts at 3pm. Follow the R2C Instagram for the exact location.
On Saturday evening, it’s the latest Left Berlin Film Club. This time we’re showing Agnes Varda’s Black Panthers, followed by Mohamed Benloulou’s The Black Panthers of Algeria, which closely examines the history of solidarity between the African American liberation movement and the Algerian Revolution. After the films, Mohamed and Ryan Mahan from the band Algiers will join us for a discussion. It starts at 6.30pm in Refuge Worldwide.
On Tuesday, Room to Raise returns to @kwia.berlin for is A Night for Palestine. They are offering another night of music, support & solidarity with our loved ones in Gaza. This month @topdogbigboy & @sarafumaca_ are hosting the evening curated by @camillelacadee. The evening starts at 8pm and continues until 1am in KWIA, Maybachufer 16. Room to Raise are our Campaign of the Week.
Most Events we talk about in this Newsletter are in English, but sometimes there is an Event in German that we think we should publicise. On Wednesday, there is the launch of the new book Trümmer auf Trümmer which analyses German Staatsräson, memory culture, and the repression of Palestine solidarity. The meeting starts at 7pm in Mehringhof. We hope to review the book on theleftberlin.com soon.
Also on Wednesday evening, Solidarity with the Ulm 5 is a fundraiser for political prisoners with vegan food and a presentation about the Ulm 5 and the effect of Section 129 on liberation movements in Germany. Section 129 is the law being used to try the Ulm 5 as being part of a criminal organisation, threatening a 5 year jail sentence. The Event starts at 7.30pm in K19: Kreutzigerstraße 19.
Please also note that the suggested reading for next Thursday’s Left Berlin reading group on the German justice system is now available. More information in next week’s Newsletter.
There is much more going on in Berlin this week. To find out more about Events we organise, please look at our Events page where you can choose between viewing All Events or just the ones organised by us. If you would like to recommend other Events, please contact us on team@theleftberlin.com.
News from Berlin and Germany
In News from Berlin, 3,000 people join Nakba demonstration; and smaller classes promised in primary schools in disadvantaged areas.
In News from Germany, changes to democracy project meets criticism; none of Germany’s climate targets for 2040 will be met; child poverty levels in Germany are 25th from 37 countries surveyed; German government announces “comprehensive” civil defence plans; Christian charity no longer considers Germany to be a fully open society.
Read all about it in this week’s News from Berlin and Germany.
The new Left Berlin Website
The Left Berlin's Tech Team is happy to announce that we are launching a brand new version of our website on Monday. Besides a cosmetic overhaul, it will also include new ways to explore events in Berlin! We have been working on it for a long time and are excited to hear what you think of it, but we also ask for your patience, since after a major update some things might not work as expected at first.
We hope you like it, and if you run into any issues, we would love it if you reached out to us at team@theleftberlin.com so we can fix things as quickly as possible!
New on theleftberlin.com
Roser Garí Pérez reports on the irregularities which have plagued the Ulm 5 trial from its start
Cherry Adam’s photos from last week-end’s Nakba demo
Katie O’Connor’s photos from Palivision
Video of the Week
This week’s Video of the Week sees Lamis ** reading part of a poem by Dareen Tatour at Palivision. Dareen was imprisoned by Israel for writing a poem.
Stay in Touch
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Keep on fighting,
The Left Berlin Editorial Board