Tenants’ movement in Berlin: Let’s fight against Deutsche Wohnen and Co.

There is a lot of laughter in the Kreuzberg club S036. “The atmosphere here is as good as at neighborhood bingo,” says a young woman as she enters the room. It is the start of the year for the tenants’ movement, the neighborhood team of the Deutsche Wohnen und Co. Enteignen initiative has invited people to the 15th Kreuzberg neighborhood meeting on Tuesday evening. For years, the focus here has been on the fight against displacement and the eviction of housing projects and neighborhood bars. “Some neighborhood meetings ended with a loud, spontaneous demonstration through Kreuzberg,” remembers a long-time tenant activist.

Those times are over. “The corona pandemic prevented street activism. In addition, there were defeats for tenants with the legal end to the rent cap and the massive restriction on the right of advance sale,” says activist Bernd, explaining the temporary lull. Therefore, this Tuesday evening the focus is on getting to know and networking with the active tenants. 18 initiatives from the twin districts of Kreuzberg/Friedrichshain briefly introduce themselves at the beginning. Afterwards, visitors have the opportunity to talk to the different initiatives, which presented their focal points on small tables.

Some exchange email addresses and event dates. Others are planning specific actions, such as the “Der Görli remains open” initiative. This is still the case, but the Senate has announced that the park will be closed in the evenings from March. The activists want to respond to this with creative protests. Antifa initiatives are mobilizing to protest against the right-wing online portal Nius, which is based at Ritterstraße 24 – 27.

Another table is about a joint approach by tenants in the event of damage and defects in the houses of large housing associations such as Gewobag and Howoge. The Kotti and Co. initiative also advocates for rapid energy-saving renovation of houses.

Grischa Dallmer and Luise Fuchs represent the Kreuzberg district group of the Berlin Tenants Association (BMG) at the meeting. “I would like to see a connection between the DW and Co. Expropriation initiative and the one developed by the BMG New Municipal Housing Initiative“, says Dallmer to the taz. Fuchs says that a visit to a neighborhood meeting two years ago was the beginning of her involvement in rent policy.

DW and Co. are also relying on a strong extra-parliamentary tenant movement in the year of the Berlin House of Representatives election. One participant still sees a major task here. “Most of the participants in the neighborhood meeting are already active. We have to reach new people on the street or through door-to-door conversations.”