Alice Hasters Lesung: Identitätskrise

In the organizer's words:

At the moment, the really big questions are being discussed: In which direction is our society moving? How do we get through the climate, energy, economic and migration crises? Do we absolutely have to abolish capitalism - or maintain it in order to survive? To what extent do the crimes of the past affect the present? Whose responsibility is it to find solutions to these questions? And who or what can we still believe at all? What is clear is that everything is in upheaval. In her new book Identity Crisis, Alice Hasters proclaims that questions about society are always questions about individual identity. If we want to change society, then we first have to determine: Who are we, really, and what do we do when the systems that have surrounded us until now, promising security, future, and justice, break away? Identity crises are exhausting, yet unavoidable, even necessary - and they are much more bearable if you recognize and accept them for what they are: a time of doubt, self-searching, processing and, above all, reinvention. This crisis is also an opportunity.

The Duden describes identity as, "Complete conformity with what one is or is described as." Alice Hasters' thesis, in turn, is: "Identity is a story you tell about yourself." But what happens to a person whose story is not (no longer) heard or no longer fits into society's changing image? What is gladly ignored in the process: White people are also in the throes of this very identity crisis. And as violently as a bad-tempered teenager in puberty. It comes to the fore, for example, in strong emotions when gender, equality and racism are discussed. The trigger is the realization that their (white) perspective is not universal. And that their notion of progress and freedom through capitalism and globalization has as a consequence the oppression of others. Instead of adequately addressing these feelings, however, many cling to the status quo and block social progress - which is gaining additional urgency with the advancing climate crisis. And even worse, they are becoming increasingly radicalized. Identity is central to the discourse around the national as well as global shift to the right. It is no coincidence that a branch of the right-wing movement calls itself identitarian. In this book, Hasters not only deals with the commonalities, differences and interconnections of various crises, but also proposes possible solutions. Her approach is interesting when she compares the identity crisis to the maturation process of a child into an adult and divides the identity crisis into four phases: Doubt (prepuberty), Search (puberty), Reinvention (late puberty), Responsibility (adolescence). In the end it comes out: An identity requires a we - a we that includes everyone, sets a framework of belonging in which we learn to endure ambiguity. Only then do we as a society create a new self-image and find the courage to look forward together.

ALICE HASTERS was born in Cologne in 1989. She lives and works as a freelance author, moderator and speaker in Berlin. After studying journalism, Hasters worked for the Tagesschau and the youth program Funk, among others. She now develops social media formats for RBB and Deutschlandfunk Nova. With Maxi Häcke, she talks about feminism and pop culture on the monthly podcast Feuer&Brot. Her first book, Was weiße Menschen nicht über Rassismus hören wollen, aber wissen sollen (What white people don't want to hear about racism, but should know), was published by hanserblau in September 2019. It occupied fifth place on Spiegel's 2020 annual bestseller list for paperback nonfiction books. She was named Medium magazine's 2020 Cultural Journalist of the Year for her communications work on racism.

Instagram: @alice_haruko

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