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Typisch Deutsch e.V. (“Typically German”) was a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, and multi-religious association that brought together people of 19 different ethnicities (including Old-Germans) and seven different religious backgrounds. We focused on educational projects and worked closely with politics and political institutions.
What has commonly been accepted as „typisch Deutsch” desperately needed a new definition when we founded our organization in 2010. In Germany, various languages, religions, ethnicities and cultures exist together – a diversity we highly value, as it holds many opportunities to prove what is actually “typisch Deutsch.”
We respect all people living in Germany as they are. Our goal was to promote and encourage a mutual tolerance and respect towards all. Additionally we discussed our experiences to create unity and togetherness to all residents in Germany. We wanted to shape a society together. In doing so, action has been taken through the use of the principles specified in our very own “Typically German Basic Laws”.
What we did:
We created meeting and idea platforms. From the requests, suggestions, and ideas collected through these platforms, projects and events were created and planned out. All of our events are videoed and photographed and have then been posted to our social media sites.
Through our actions, we motivated others around us and hoped to raise their awareness of personal strengths and abilities to inspire a change. Once people realize their ability to create change, a sense of responsibility for our society arises – a feeling of togetherness.
We encouraged and demanded problem-solving thinking and action. We knew that we can accomplish far more together than alone.
Projects:
Thanks to social media, we were able to announce current activities and events and kept in close touch with our large supporter base.
Many of our projects allowed us to reach out to the public and have conversations with them. For example, our project “Deutschstunde” (German Hour), encouraged students in 8 – 10th grade to participate in society, specifically in areas of politics, social and sustainable development. Throughout this project, the students brainstormed and discussed interesting, practical answers to contemporary issues together.
In every newsletter we have covered current social issues and offered solutions and suggestions to these issues.
Successes:
Enthusiastic reactions told us that many supported our ideas and valued our dedication to changing the concept of what it means to be “typisch Deutsch.” Mere months after the founding of Typisch Deutsch e.V., we acquired a broad support base and got even more daily.
Our oldest member was Klaus, who was 83-years-old when he reached out to us in 2011. Many wrote to us and expressed their excitement about the efforts Typisch Deutsch e.V. does. We’ve received exciting feedback from young and old, which encouraged us to continue our work and provided us with more ideas. Numerous prominent advocates, such as Maria Böhmer, Klaus Wowereit, Michel Friedman, Kool Savaş, Alpa Gun, Flying Steps, Bahar Kızıl, Naika Foroutan and Sinan Akkuş, have shown their support for our ideas and our mission.
The overwhelming amount of feedback we had received, showed us that there was a real need for these discussions and programs in our society. Most importantly, this feedback showed us that we were on the right track in doing so with Typisch Deutsch e.V.
