Are you looking for advice and help?

Have you been treated worse than others due to your “skin colour”, nationality, culture or religion? We listen to what you have experienced and support you in finding a solution to deal with it.

Are you looking for information and support to do something against unequal treatment or racism?

We look for a solution together with you!

Do you need counselling?

Office hours

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday

11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Tel: 030 / 216 88 84

Email: bdb(at)bdb-germany.de

In addition to online, video and telephone counselling, we offer face-to-face counselling by appointment.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR CALL!

EXAMPLES OF COUNSELLING CASES

Case example 1: Access to recreational facilities

Three friends who know each other from their vocational training classes get together to go dancing. Mr. G is 19 years old, his friend Mr. B. is 21 years old and Mr. A. is 17 years old.
In the queue in front of the club, the three spend their time in casual conversation, Mr. G and Mr. B having a Russian accent. At the entrance, they are asked to show their IDs. Both men have an ID with a Russian sounding place of birth since they are co-nationals (Aussiedler). The bouncer refuses to let Mr. G. and Mr. B. enter. When asked why, he stated that he is not permitted to allow in “people like them” because the female guests are so often bothered by them. However, he would allow Mr. A to come in. The friends consult each other briefly and decide to go home instead.

      Options for action

  1. Counselling
    – Recognition of injured feelings,
    – Clarification and development of options for action
  2. Personal conflict advice
    – Offender-victim compensation (assuming there are offenders and that their identity is known),
    – Discussion with the operators of the dance club
  3. Publicity
    – Write articles or inform the press
    – Call to boycott the club
  4. Court
    – Civil action suit under the AGG
  5. Other
    – Discussions with the Office of Public Order regarding which requirements the club must meet in order to keep its concession licence

Case example 2: Practising religion

17-year old K. is in the 11th grade at a grammar school. Before she eats her lunch, she prays briefly and thanks God for her food. She is then repeatedly called “Mother Theresa” and “Virgin Mary” by her classmates in the schoolyard. Another time she is not invited to a classmate’s birthday with the reasoning: “We do not need a pious churchgoer!”. K. feels insulted and attacked. K. tries to talk with her class teacher about it, but the teacher thinks that the exclusion is not due to her practice of religion and blames it on “puberty”. K. feels misunderstood. At home, she tells her parents about being excluded, but they do not dare do anything out of fear that their child could have more problems at school if they were to make this an issue with her teachers and school director.

      Options for action

  1. Consultation
    – Recognition of injured feelings,
    – Clarification and elaboration of options for action
  2. Personal conflict advice
    – Offender-victim compensation (assuming there are offenders and that their identity is known),
    – Talk with the parents and class teacher, possibly with the director of the school
  3. Public
    – Organise a parents’ evening regarding the matter

Case example 3: Racist insults while in traffic

Mr. N., a man of Vietnamese origin, is involved in a car accident that he did not cause. Another car hit him from behind. The person who caused the accident, Mr. A., gets out of his car and accuses Mr. N. of being a bad driver. Mr. N. defends himself and emphasises that he himself is not guilty, because he has properly followed the rules of the road. Then the Mr. A. starts to insult Mr. N. in an aggressive tone with the words, “Where did you learn to drive, monkey?” Despite Mr. N.’s efforts to calm him down to discuss the matter calmly, Mr. A. continues to talk aggressively to him and insult him in a racist way, using the word “Fiji” several times. Mr. N. feels offended and hurt.

      Options for action

  1. Consultation
    – Clarify and develop options for action
  2. Personal conflict processing
    – Offender-victim compensation (assuming there is an offender and that his/her identity is known)
  3. Public
    – Write a flyer or article
  4. Court
    – File an insult complaint:
    Check whether specific responsible persons can be located
    Check whether particular laws or regulations can be applied in this case