"Future through diversity" - Intercultural Weeks 2012 from 22 September to 7 October in the 100-nation city of Chemnitz
Invitation to the opening by Lord Mayor Barbara Ludwig on 22 September, 12 noon, on the Neumarkt
Chemnitz is a city of 100 nations. The organisers and participants of the Intercultural Weeks in Chemnitz from 22 September to 7 October 2012 want to show how enriching this can be with a varied programme. According to Etelka Kobuß, Chemnitz's commissioner for foreigners, one of the main aims is to develop a better mutual understanding through information, personal contact and dialogue and to help break down prejudices between migrants and the majority society.
This year, Chemnitz Neumarkt will once again become a colourful meeting place for international Chemnitz for one day with the festive and cheerful kick-off event for the Intercultural Weeks on Saturday, 22 September 2012. The festival and the subsequent two-week series of events of the Intercultural Weeks 2012 in Chemnitz will be officially opened at 12 noon on the Neumarkt under the motto "Future through diversity" by the Mayor of the City of Chemnitz Barbara Ludwig, patron of the Intercultural Weeks in Chemnitz, and the Saxon Commissioner for Foreigners, Professor Dr Martin Gillo.
Afterwards, the AG In- und Ausländer e.V. together with Chemnitz schools invite you to a preliminary programme and from 1 p.m. around 50 associations, institutions and organisations invite you on a day trip around the world. Visitors can sample international and local products and culinary delicacies at numerous information stands - and, above all, get to know the country and its people in personal encounters.
The stage programme on the Neumarkt will once again be as diverse as its artists: amateur performers have rehearsed a programme withAfrican rhythms, oriental dances and Asian sounds that will bring people of different nationalities, cultures and religions together. The Intercultural Weeks give citizens an insight into the everyday life of other cultures with personal encounters. At the same time, visitors are sensitised to the lives of people who come to Chemnitz from other parts of the world. In this way, the events are primarily intended to contribute to the development of an overall democratic culture and to the reduction of right-wing extremism and racism.
Etelka Kobuß invites the people of Chemnitz: "Let yourself be surprised by the truly diverse range of these possible encounters - and accept the invitations! You will learn a lot about real life and thus also learn something beyond book knowledge and headlines. Taking part in our programmes is also a great opportunity to overcome prejudices and break down clichés together."
The Intercultural Weeks 2012 are supported by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, the City of Chemnitz, the company eins energie in Sachsen, Chemnitzer Turm-Brauhaus, the Oscar Görner print shop in Chemnitz, Galerie Roter Turm and the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation in Saxony.
Participants in the preparation and organisation include AG In- und Ausländer e. V., Foreigners' Advisory Council of the City of Chemnitz, Lila Villa Women's Centre of the akCENTE e. V. association, Omar Jamil, Association of Vietnamese in Chemnitz and Surroundings e. V., Social Welfare Office of the City of Chemnitz, Foreigners' Representative of the City of Chemnitz.
Further information/contact:Etelka Kobuß, Foreigners' Representative of the City of Chemnitz - c/o City of Chemnitz, Social Welfare Office, Annaberger Straße 93, 09120 Chemnitz, phone: 0371 488 5047, fax: 0371 488 5099, e-mail: auslaenderbeauftragte(at)stadt-chemnitz.de