Our Story | History
More about the development and history of AfroPolitan Berlin
2026
In 2026 AfroPolitan Berlin received a two-year funding grant from the Senatsverwaltung für Arbeit, Soziales, Gleichstellung, Integration, Vielfalt und Antidiskriminierung, and we shifted the core focus of our programmes towards:
Community * Creating * Visibility
As part of this shift, we were excited to introduce three brand new community offerings:
- Black Spectrum: Care Praxis – A third format was added to the Black Spectrum offering, which is a series of monthly meet ups specifically designed as safe spaces for Black neurodivergent people
- Black Sexuality – A new series of events was developed exploring themes around Black sexuality, including dance workshops, concerts, and Self Labs
- Schwarz Gelesen – Led by Dzifa, this book club brings together Black book lovers to explore and discuss important pieces of Black literature
October 2026 also marks the 10-year anniversary of AfroPolitan. This year is an opportunity to recognize ten years of building community, creating new opportunities, and creating safe spaces for Black people in Berlin and beyond.
2025
In 2025, we introduced a new focus on growing our visibility and strengthening our online community. Our new social media strategy aimed to give more insight into our events and the AfroPolitan space, as well as give people a chance to get to know our team members better.
2025 was also very busy with new partnerships, projects, and events developing throughout the Year. We partnered with Berlin Biennale, received funding for Black Dance Berlin, and welcomed the community to join us for events such as: Kimetic Yoga, Afrofreminist Café, and Blacksplained, our lecture series led by Black researchers.
2024
In 2024, we were excited to welcome Miriam Chebaibai Koch, as the new Project Manager for AfroPolitan. Continuing the amazing work of Tessa, our previous Project Manager, Miriam also brought along ten years of experience in community social work. 2024 was a year of new ideas and structures, setting a path for AfroPolitan Berlin’s future growth and development.
2023
2023 was both a demanding and a high-growth year in terms of our reach and the diversity of programmes within the project. The project focus shifted to “AfroPolitan Berlin – Identity ★ Creating ★ Community,” structured around three core areas: Personal Growth and Identity (Identity), Creative and Professional Development (Creating), and Culture, Knowledge & Community (Community). We developed two new formats this year: The Self-Lab, which provides Black people with diverse opportunities and space to explore and grow, and the B(l)ack Strengthening Mentoring Programme, which enables individual empowerment, intergenerational exchange, and personal development for both mentors and mentees. We also continued the You Got This! Project Workshop and the Performance Panorama. The latter even received funding for two editions from the Senate Department for Culture, allowing us to support more artists than in previous years through mentoring/guidance, paid rehearsal processes, and final presentation opportunities.
2022
2022 brought another significant growth surge for AfroPolitan Berlin. In addition to the core program, the now well-established and further-developed You Got This! Project Workshop was carried out in exchange and collaboration with Kulturhaus Brotfabrik Vienna. This partnership enabled reciprocal visits for teams and participants, and resulted in the creation of freely accessible You Got This! Starter Kits (project development workbooks). You’ve Got This! Starter Kits This year also marked the first edition of the AfroPolitan Berlin – Performance-Panorama, a unique workshop programme for Black (emerging) professional performing artists, including mentoring/guidance, paid rehearsal processes, and final presentations.
2020 / 2021
In 2020, the project focus shifted to “AfroPolitan Berlin – Community. Knowledge. Resilience,” building on previous goals while placing stronger emphasis on networking, empowerment, and personal development of participants. During this year, Tessa Hart took over the leadership of AfroPolitan Berlin, having already facilitated workshops within the project since 2018.
This period was unexpectedly shaped by the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic and the increased visibility of the Black Lives Matter movement in the broader society. As a result, we rapidly expanded our digital presence and reach, and developed a new, extended website. The intersectional core of our work was sharpened through developing existing programmes further and creating new formats, – including the first programme in Germany specifically for Black neurodivergent people.
2018/19
In 2018, Jacqueline Mayen took over the leadership of the project. During this period, partnerships were expanded, participant wishes were integrated more deeply into the design and conception of new formats, and regular participation in our programmes increased. The You Got This! Project Workshop was also initiated during this time, supporting project creators in launching and further developing their own initiatives.
Additionally, AfroPolitan Berlin’s social media channels, newsletter, and overall reach grew significantly throughout these years.
2016 / 2017
In 2015, the sponsoring association Forum Brasil, together with founding director Kani Tuyala, developed the project, which was launched in 2016 as “AfroPolitan – jung. Schwarz. urban” Shortly thereafter, Olaolu Fajembola took over leadership.
From the beginning, the project was designed to strengthen participants’ sense of self-efficacy, expand their cultural capital, promote their political and societal participation, and create impulses and early experiences for their professional futures and personal development. Additional founding goals included supporting the development of a culture of remembrance around German colonial history, fostering contemporary public dialogue on postcolonialism, racism, and migration, and strengthening the visibility and normalcy of Black perspectives within society at large.
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