On 17 May 2023 at 8 a.m., the mayor of the municipality of Rüdersdorf bei Berlin, Sabine Löser, and the municipality's equal opportunities and integration officers, Janine Antoniak and Natalie Klein (requested), will raise the rainbow flag at the municipality's town hall (Hans-Striegelski-Str. 5, 15562 Rüdersdorf bei Berlin). You are cordially invited to attend. As in the past, the municipality is thus setting an example of tolerance and acceptance as well as the diversity of lifestyles in Rüdersdorf near Berlin, Märkisch-Oderland, Brandenburg and beyond.
On 17 May 1990, the WHO General Assembly decided to remove homosexuality from the list of mental illnesses. As a result, 17 May was later proclaimed International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.
On the same day, the theatre play "The Trial of Hans Litten" by Mark Hayhurst will be performed at the Kulturhaus Rüdersdorf for around 220 young people from Year 10 at primary and secondary schools and Heinitz-Gymnasium Rüdersdorf. A workshop will be held from 10 a.m. to introduce the topic before the play is performed from 11 a.m. onwards. The play depicts the painful journey through various concentration camps. Hans Litten is the lawyer from Halle (Saale) who questioned and exposed Adolf Hitler in a famous trial in 1931. Hitler never forgave the young lawyer for this humiliation. He had him arrested in 1933, shortly after coming to power. Five years later, Hans Litten died in Dachau concentration camp at the age of 34. It is a political play based on historical facts, but at the same time it also shows an intense human drama: the futile struggle of a mother - Irmgard Litten - for the life of her son. The fact that Litten and his cellmates Carl von Ossietzky and Erich Mühsam show humour to the end shows their greatness and gives this play a pinch of humour and hope alongside its suspense.
Mayor Sabine Löser explains: " Raising the rainbow flag is more than just a cherished tradition in our community. Rather, it is a recognised sign of tolerance, diversity and openness - a symbol with which we as a municipality clearly show our stance. In the same spirit, we as a community have also made it possible to bring the impressive theatre play "The Trial of Hans Litten" to Rüdersdorf for young people who are allowed to vote for the first time this year."