The eighth of March was celebrated as a special day in Kreisau. On this date a workshop took place in the context of the women's day. The participants, who came from many different countries, dealt with the topic of gender roles within the framework of the project.
First of all, the participants got to know each other by making name tags for another person and then discussing questions such as "Is the hole in the donut part of the donut"?
After restoring brain activity with coffee and biscuits, we talked about what rules each person would need to feel safe, comfortable and open in the group. The ideas of the participants were then summarized in a group contract.
The next part of the project was to discuss. For this purpose it was planned to discover a controversy existing in the present group and then to find arguments for both sides. However, since the opinions of the participants were in about the same direction, we did not find what we were looking for. For this reason we then presented each other with experiences with gender roles and discrimination in our home countries, but also with facts on these topics.
After lunch and a coffee break the last and probably most important part of the project took place. We gathered in small groups, each of which was invited to come up with their own concept for a short play on gender roles and then present it. Soon fake moustaches and blonde wigs were made from paper and attached to the living object, clothes racks were stolen and large parts of the interior were mixed up. But it was worth it, because each group performed a sometimes funny, sometimes thought-provoking and in other cases highly professional performance. Afterwards, all the plays were performed again, with the difference that the spectators could also take part: By clapping one could now take over the role of a person standing on the "stage" and decide for oneself how the play should continue. The previously quiet, passive accompaniment of a Cis woman harassed in the club now resisted the harasser. The latter, in turn, in the first performance, was self-confident and apologized.
During the project a strong energy could be felt coming from the participants. Although most of them got up early, it was clear how important the theme of the workshop was for many. This energy also passed to us, making leading this workshop a very enjoyable experience.
[Authors of the text: Caterina Ramon Rotger und Friederike Ott - volunteers at the IYMC Krzyżowa]
