Being Entangled

What do the struggle over Tempelhofer Feld and the shortage of Muslim burial plots have in common? What is a community garden doing in a cemetery? Where do life, death and transformation intersect? Whom do we remember, and who is forgotten? How is the visible entangled with the invisible?

We come together to listen to stories in a summer evening atmosphere. We experience a guided tour through the space and through our consciousness. We share food and explore this multi-layered place of remembrance.

We stroll through the pink evening light, exchange perspectives and talk about putting down roots and about justice. We touch the earth, where life reawakens anew every year and where stories lie buried.

Together We Will:

• take part in a meditation guided by the artist Alanna Lynch on the themes of transformation and the life cycle.
• create a storytelling circle over a summer soup.
• do a guided tour through the living history of the cemetery – from the forced labour camp of World War II to the Berlin Airlift and the evolution of Berlin's cemetery landscape.
• take part in conversations with representatives from the campaigns and initiatives: 100% THF, Muslim Cemeteries (Berlin Citizens' Platform Research Team), The Garden, and Fixpunkt.

Why We Are Doing This

Being Entangled brings together communities whose struggles are more connected than they might first appear. The BBQ meadow on Tempelhofer Feld, for instance, is a beloved gathering place for many communities, including Muslim communities: a natural point of connection with the 100% THF campaign to keep the field open and free.

The question of Muslim burial grounds is one of justice and recognition. The current shortage sends a troubling message: that people may be tolerated as residents and taxpayers, but that there is no lasting space for their memory. Repurposing existing underused cemeteries for Muslim burials – rather than developing them – also makes sound ecological sense.

Tempelhofer Feld and the community garden are places where diverse cultures and life stories come together without the barrier of cost. Defending spaces like these, reserved for community, nature, and memory rather than profit, is part of a broader commitment to a fair and sustainable city.

With municipal elections this year, this is a timely moment to recognize which struggles converge, and to help shape a Berlin guided by common sense, solidarity, and long-term thinking.

This text was written by the event organiser.