Oyoun is an important venue in the intersectional art and culture scene, which primarily focuses on queer*feminist, migrant and decolonial perspectives and has already received several international awards for its work: https://oyoun.de/en/

It is impossible to imagine cosmopolitan Berlin without Oyoun, yet Oyoun’s funding will be cut and the venue shut down.

The impending closure of Oyoun was provoked by an event that took place on the fourth of November 2023 on the premises of Oyoun: an evening of "mourning and hope" by the organisation „Jüdische Stimme für einen gerechten Frieden in Nahost“Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Middle East, the German section of the international umbrella group European Jews for a Just Peace. 

The association is dedicated to "informing about the necessity and possibility of a just peace between Palestine and Israel" and "actively working towards the realisation of a lasting peace that is viable for both nations". In 2019, the organisation was awarded the Göttingen Peace Prize.

Oyoun had rejected the Berlin Senate's request to cancel the event and explained its decision in a statement.

The cancellation of Oyoun’s funding marks the end of freedom of speech and artistic freedom in Germany. 

Furthemore it means the end of an organisation that actively practises anti-discrimination and social criticism and contributes to Berlin's religious, cultural, ethnic and political plurality.  

It is the task and duty of publicly funded cultural venues to reflect diversity of opinions. Democracy needs places where marginalised, intersectional, pluralistic perspectives are presented and discussed in society, art and culture.  

A policy of repressing critical voices causes serious damage to freedom of expression and thus to democracy in Germany. Berlin needs cultural spaces that are dedicated to the issues and concerns of its immediate neighbourhood. 

Oyoun must stay. Especially in Germany. Especially now.

Sign this petition to challenge the Berlin Senate decision!