Saarstr. 14
12161 Berlin
Germany
- Democracy and community development
- Gender
- Human rights
- International/Cultural relations
- Youth and education
Hashomer Hatzair Germany (Hashomer Hatzair Deutschland e.V. or HHD) is a non-profit, progressive Jewish youth movement that was founded in 2012, re-established for the first time since it was prohibited during the Second World War and the Holocaust. Our work is based on a continuous learning process of learning and reflection. We promote social engagement, critical thinking and creativity through respectful and playful activities in groups. The organisation is currently not funded regularly. Our work is supported by membership fees and small donations. Nowadays we are working on increasing our networks, fundraising for specific projects and cooperation, in order to increase our scope of activities and allow participation of more children and youth. Due to the lack of funding, there are no paid staff members but rather reimbursement of expenses to our pedagogical coordinator. Our educational team is based on youth, ages 16-20, who are volunteering their time. Our board and chairperson are all volunteers.
HHD is a progressive Jewish organisation that operates through non-formal education. The organisation works to connect and strengthen the pluralistic community as a group, for the recognition of Judaism as a shared culture and history. The organisation works in partnership with partner organisations and the world movement, as an act of coming together on the personal and social level. We work to provide a safer space by strengthening and empowering Jewish activists and their peers. We strive to develop independent and critical thinking out of solidarity in order to create an equitable and fair society as a whole. We are a team of young, committed, critical people in Germany, most of us with migrant background. We do not only want to discuss Jewish life from a past perspective nor separate it from current issues. Jewish life is an ongoing thread in our educational work, an intersectional lens on the world through which we want to discuss relevant political and social issues. The new board and chairperson, elected late 2019, have set as priority to increase the work all around Germany, and with partners in Europe and beyond.
Our Ken (Hebrew for a Nest; Activity Center) Berlin belongs to the international movement of Hashomer Hatzair. Currently, Ken Berlin has 2 children's groups ages 7-13, who meet regularly on a bi-weekly basis. The group hours are planned and executed by a team of young helpers (guides) and the pedagogical coordinator. Since 2020 we plan activities for youth workers and educators from various background and partner organisations, aged 18+, to support educational work against anti-Semitism and racism. Our upcoming event is a Passover seminar, with more than 40 educators from Germany, Poland and Israel, followed by our annual Passover reception. We currently have two regular large events: Passover Reception, to celebrate the biggest Jewish holiday of liberation with our community partners and friends; our summer camp, aimed at children and youth from all around Germany, with international visitors. We are currently working on historical projects, bringing together the new generation of Hashomer Hatzair Germany with its historical roots and members. We wish to collect information and personal items that tell the story of our movement, but also create the connection between generations and offsprings.
HHD is a unique organisation within the German society today. Re-establishing more than 70 years after the Holocaust, our organisation aims to support critical non-formal education, connected to history and space. We offer the point of view not just of a Jewish minority, as migrants, but also with the complete world of values, connected to equality for all and human rights. We believe we can increase the voice of intersectionality in the network, from the Jewish perspective. We hope for fruitful cooperation, affecting and assisting education and work against anti-semitism and racism.
As mentioned before, we would like to offer a progressive voice, affected by intersectionality as a lens to raise awareness, promote equality and transform the societies we live in. Knowing several ALF Partners and Network, we have deep respect for the work it is doing for a better world, and believe we can support it, but also learn a great deal from it. We are hopeful to increase our work with other progressive organisations, and learn further from them and their activities. We are certain that the support of ALF and its network could allow us to increase amount of activities in Germany and beyond, which are currently a struggle with resources.