Forum321. Brüche und Fronten – Der Nahostkrieg und der Antisemitismus in Deutschland

In the organizer's words:

600 years ago, Jews were expelled from Cologne by a council resolution - a historical event that serves as the starting point for this year's Forum 321. The keynote lecture will take up this topic, while the panel discussion will focus on the current Middle East conflict and its impact on social discourse in Germany.

The focus is particularly on art, culture and science. The debates are leading to deep divisions in society as different camps take up positions. At the same time, the already existing anti-Semitism is becoming more apparent.

Issues such as anti-Semitism clauses in the cultural sector, calls for boycotts of Jewish institutions, the "Strike Germany" movement and public protests against the Israeli offensive in Gaza are exacerbating the divisions in German society. These complex issues will be addressed in a high-caliber panel discussion.

On the podium:

• Prof. Dr. Omri Boehm, philosopher
• PD Dr. Navid Kermani, writer and orientalist
• Prof. Dr. Mirjam Wenzel, literary scholar and director of the Jewish Museum Frankfurt
• Moderator: Anja Reinhardt, Deutschlandfunk

The event will be framed by Sistanagila. The Berlin ensemble with Israeli and Iranian musicians will present a fascinating fusion of klezmer, classical, Sephardic and Persian music, paired with percussion elements by the exceptional artist Udi Shlomo.

Free admission to the event, please register at miqua@lvr.de.

Organizer:

• MiQua. LVR Jewish Museum in the Cologne Archaeological Quarter
• Cologne Society for Christian-Jewish Cooperation e. V.
• MiQua Friends. Friends of the LVR Jewish Museum in the Archaeological Quarter Cologne e. V.
• Cologne Forum for Culture in Dialogue e. V./SHALOM-MUSIK.KOELN

The panel discussion will take place in the Stiftersaal of the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum & Foundation Corbound, Obenmarspforten 40, 50667 Cologne.

Further information can be found on the MiQua website.

Forum 321

Forum 321 was founded in Cologne in 2023 to make Jewish life more visible and to counter anti-Semitism. It is an initiative of three organizations that support MiQua: the Kölnische Gesellschaft für Christlich-Jüdische Zusammenarbeit, the MiQua-Freunde e. V. (MiQua's support association) and the Kölner Forum für Kultur im Dialog e. V.

The name "321" recalls the historical decree of Emperor Constantine dated December 11, 321, which documents the earliest evidence of Jewish life in Cologne. Forum 321 would therefore like to devote itself to various aspects of Jewish life in Germany in Cologne on December 11 in future.