"My body belongs to me - from head to toe, whether in a miniskirt or with a headscarf"

DaMigra annual conference on Friday, September 09th, 2022 in Berlin

Berlin, March 09.09.2022th, XNUMX. Hardly any other topic is as controversial as the female body. This is a political, social and cultural battlefield – we have been used as a projection screen since the early days of patriarchy. Whether in relation to wearing a headscarf or a miniskirt, in relation to sexual identities or sex before marriage, in relation to wanting to be a mother or having an abortion and physical integrity. Around the world we are still fighting for equality in society, against the control of our bodies or our lives, against the stigmatization and criminalization of doctors and women's rights activists.

DaMigra e. V., the umbrella organization of migrant women's organizations, invites you today on Friday, September 09.09.2022th, 2022 to its annual conference XNUMX on these controversial topics with the topic "My body belongs to me - from head to toe, whether in a mini skirt or with a headscarf - women with migration and flight history between multiple discrimination and the right to self-determination" a. Guests are invited from politics, media and civil society. Over 100 guests from all over Germany came to Berlin today to raise their voices on these issues.

Self-determination is a great asset, but unfortunately more of an ideal than reality, because women in Germany also face many obstacles. The struggles for freedom and self-determination of migrant or refugee women are often politically exploited. In particular, the so-called headscarf debate, which has not wanted to end in Germany for years, even decades. Right-wing and conservative forces delight in her again and again. The right to self-determination and supposed freedom debates play a role again and again. However, it is doubtful whether this is actually about a fight for more equality. The debate about bodily self-determination in the area of ​​reproductive and sexual justice is similar. In both discussions, there is always a struggle as to whether a woman, a girl, a person read as a woman, is actually allowed to make decisions about herself and her body. At DaMigra, we took these debates as an opportunity to speak from an intersectional and migrated perspective.

"Self-determination means woman decides how she shows herself, loves and lives, not: Woman chooses between life plans that are equally determined by patriarchal norms. If we, migrant, refugee or Muslim women, are a topic in German feminism debates, then mostly as an object to talk about. We hardly speak for ourselves. A modern equality policy must not only be inclusive, but it must also treat differences as normal and it must be anti-racist and feminist at the same time.”,
says Lourdes Martínez, chairwoman and spokeswoman of the board of DaMigra eV

The contents of the annual conference confirmed what reality shows us again and again: in times of crisis and in the age of the strengthening of conservative and religious forces worldwide, the rights of women and members of the LGBTQIA+ community, especially those who experience multiple discrimination, are the first to be withdrawn will. First we get trampled on. But our rights are human rights. Women's rights are a human right. Our self-determination is a human right. And human rights are universal – for everyone, always and everywhere!

If you have any questions about the conference, please write to presse@damigra.de.