On Tuesday, 21 November 2017, the public lecture series Linie 4, organized by the BGHS in cooperation with Volkshochschule Bielefeld, continued with sociologist Carla Thiele. Her lecture was to the topic Persecution and New beginning: Yazidi women in Germany.

According to Carla Thiele, the Yazidi community in Germany is the second largest in the world. Most of them are settled in Eastern Westphalia and Lower Saxony. The daily news often covers Yazidi as refugees or in the context of “Ehrenmorde” (honour killings). But the news rarely provide background information, like: Who are the Yezidi? Where do they come from and what beliefs do they have? Why are they persecuted as a religious minority? These were some of the questions the sociologist Carla Thiele discussed in her lecture.

Germany: a land of many opportunities – but still unfree?

The first aspect of Carla Thiele’s lecture based on the question how Yezidi women find a balance between their old traditions and their new ways of life in Germany. She focused on the inner perspectives of the Yazidi women, setting aside any kinds of descriptions from outside.

Carla Thiele pointed out that the challenge of balancing old and new ways of living is more difficult for the younger Yezidi women who live in Germany in the second or third generation. They feel, that their ideas for emancipation often are in opposition to patriarchal structures of Yazidi traditions – especially in the case of marriage. On the one hand, there is their faith and their social and cultural backgrounds of the Yazidi community. On the other hand, there are desires for freedom, emancipation and self-determination. To combine these life perspectives is not only a challenge for the Yazidi women but for the whole Yazidi community worldwide.

The lecture was followed by a lively discussion, where Carla Thiele could answer more questions, show her expertise and share her knowledge with the interested listeners.

Preview: Chemistry in Court

On Tuesday, 5 Decemer, the open lecture series will be continued with a lecture by the historian Marcus Carrier to the topic Chemistry in Court: Poisonings in the 19th Century. The lecture will be in German.

For further information to the open lecture series and the programme please see:
uni.aktuell (in German)
Interview with Theresa Hornischer at campus radio station Hertz 87.9(in German)
Interview with Marcus Carrier at campus radio station Hertz 87.9 (in German)
#Campusminute with Theresa Hornischer (in German)
www.uni-bielefeld.de/bghs/Public_Science/Linie_4/
www.vhs-bielefeld.de

Text: Theresa Hornischer. Translation: Andreas Hermwille