QueerHistoryMonth Hamburg
QueerHistoryMonth will take place in Hamburg from May 1st to 31st, 2026 (www.queerhistoryhamburg.de). Various events within the festival will bring the history (and stories) of the queer community in Hamburg to life. Everyone is welcome – Kings, Quings, Queens, Allies, Friends, (chosen) Families, and everyone in between and beyond!
Event
The GEW Hamburg invites you to a reading and a discussion with Lutz van Dijk: Lutz van Dijk talks about his coming out as a young teacher at the time and reads from his book The Wide World (Querverlag 2026).
The author and educator Lutz van Dijk reads from his newly published autobiographical book, "The Wide World – New York to Cape Town." In it, he recounts formative stages of his life, first at age 18 in New York, then from 1975 as a student and teacher in Hamburg, later as a journalist in Jerusalem, as an employee of the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, and now, for almost 25 years, at age 70, in Cape Town.
The evening will focus on memories of his time as the youngest teacher at a special needs school in Hamburg-Billstedt, and his involvement in the emerging gay rights movement, from the HAH (Homosexual Action Hamburg) to the founding of the MHC (Magnis-Hirschfeld Center). Terms like "queer" or "rainbow family" as we understand them today did not yet exist.
Following a welcome address by GEW chairman Sven Quierng, Lutz van Dijk will give a presentation and read from his work. It will be particularly interesting that numerous contemporaries, many of whom remain personal friends to this day, will be present: These include members of his first shared apartment, his first headmistress (now 85), who supported his coming out as a young teacher, and the two children from his former rainbow family, who now have children and families of their own.
The second part of the evening offers an opportunity for discussion with the audience.
Date: May 4, 2026
Time: 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Location: Curiohaus, Rothenbaumchaussee 11, 20148 Hamburg
Organized by: Education and Science Workers' Union (GEW)
Welcome address: Sven Quierng (Chairman of the GEW Hamburg)
Guest: Lutz van Dijk
The event is free of charge. Registration is not required. The venue is easily accessible.
Notes
As part of the public relations work for QueerHistoryMonth, photo and video recordings may be made.
QueerHistoryMonth is only responsible for marketing and coordination and is not the organizer of the individual events.
All organizational and content-related tasks, including security, permits and insurance, are the sole responsibility of the respective organizers (responsible organization).
QHM is not liable for the content, organization, or any damages that may occur during the events. The organizers indemnify QHM against all third-party claims, including those arising from injuries, property damage, or losses.
