Scriptings

Tonspuren zur Linken/Soundtracks on the Radical Left Achim Lengerer’s ongoing film research concerns a blank spot in the public discourse in Germany: namely, the important role played by politically active migrants on the left in the labour struggles in West Germany during the 1970s and 1980s. At a time when German industries first fell into decline and trade unions went into retreat, migrant workers from Turkey and Southern Europe were heavily involved in political actions on the radical left, for example in the so-called “wild strikes” of 1973 (especially at the Ford strike in Cologne). These activists made an indelible mark on the political landscape, in the leftwing and conservative press. Moreover, there are filmic documents, such as the short documentary This Strike Was Not Planned by Thomas Giefer, Yüksel Uğurlu und Karl Baumgarten, 1982. Currently, Lengerer is working towards the finalization of a series of short films in collaboration with local activists, which is co-produced by the Temporary Gallery and the Academy of the Arts of the Word, Cologne. All images: private archives, Berlin/Cologne With special thanks to Mitat Özdemir, Peter Bach und Joachim Römer