In this public lecture, titled De-Integration. The Making and Breaking of Jewish Identity in post-1989 Germany, Max Czollek will elaborate on the strictly confined role past and present Jews and other minorities are forced to play within the German memory theatre and the theatre of integration, questioning the general (self-)image of Germany as and community of reformed perpetrators and making visible the ethno-nationalist backbone of contemporary German’s hegemonic culture (Leitkultur). In face of the growing threat of far-right extremism, he argues for a fundamental re-thinking of past, present and future Germany under the paradigms of de-integration and radical diversity. Max Czollek will point out possibilities for (artistic) practices and interventions that promote the emancipation of minorities from their assigned roles in the political debate through solidarity and allyship among the variety of minority groups that constitute modern German society.

Max Czollek completed his doctorate at the centre for Antisemitism Studies at Technische Universität Berlin in 2016 and is a member of the producers' collective "Yalta - Positions on the Jewish Present", the lyric collective G13 and has organized, among others, the "Radical Jewish Arts Days" (2017) and the “Days of Jewish-Muslim Leitkultur” (2020). Besides the above-mentioned essays, he has also published several volumes of poetry, among them Jubeljahre (2017) and Grenzwerte (2019).

Participation in the event is free of charge and possible in-person and via Zoom. To receive the Zoom link, please write to Sophie Schmalenberger at soschma@cas.au.dk. A valid Coronapass is required for attending the lecture in person.