For the second time the Girls* Empowerment-Camp took place this year from 22th to 26th of October in Neu-Anspach. Thirty-three girls* aged between 12 and 18 years took part during their autumn holidays. Every day there were many workshops for the participants to choose from, for example on manga, social media, hip hop, theater, self-assertion and much more. The crowning conclusion was the self-organised party on Tuesday evening.

The Girls*-Camp began last year as an opportunity to provide the girls* with a safe space for exchange and self-determination. With the same goals, it started this year in the first week of the autumn holidays at the seminar house of basa e.V. in collaboration with girls centre from Frankfurt Infrau e.V., fema and the girls culture centre Mafalda. The focus of the camp was on the aspect and possibility of (self-)empowerment. This is exactly what the girls* were taught and encouraged in the different workshops. To ensure that every participant feels comfortable in the camp, an awareness team was set up, meeting every evening and discussing internal group issues. The team consisted of four girls* and served as contact persons during the entire camp with the aim of clarifying conflicts and responding to each individual needs. In the morning and evening, there was also a plenary session giving each girl* the opportunity to participate and give feedback at any time.

Beginning with the workshops on social media, manga and hip-hop, topics such as ideals of beauty, gender binary stereotypes, but also personal consumption and movement as a means of expression were explored. External speakers were invited to conduct these workshops. It's worth mentioning that the workshop on social media was organised by a former participant, who provided a space to reflect on the impact of social media on our daily life. The manga workshop was offered spontaneously by a participant whose aim it was to teach the girls* the basics of manga drawing.

Great speakers also came for the other workshops. For example, Franciska Petsch from Hannover, who organised a football workshop with topics such as cohesion, fair play and solidarity. Here the girls* came back strengthened and empowered from the soccer field to the basa!

In the self-assertion workshop, the girls* learned the principles of Wendo (it means "Women do it!") and feminist self-assertion with Draupadi Fitz, an instructor from Frankfurt. One in three women* experiences violence (physical or sexual), which is often expressed verbally. With a holistic approach, the girls* learned to counteract this violence, to perceive and assess situations from the outset, and to use strategies against border violations consciously. Throughout exercises such as breaking wood boards and saying "No!" loudly they were given the opportunity to strengthen their self-confidence and their own limits.

In addition to these workshops, a workshop was offered by the nearby community supported agriculture. Here the girls* walked together with carers and were able to use the morning for learning about fruits and vegetables, that grow sustainably using the "Market Gardening"-method. Also, they were able to see and get to know the currently seasonal fruits and vegetables. At the theater workshop, ten participants came up with their own play, in which binary role models and difficult family dynamics were topic by them. In the end, the women* of the play united against the "macho men" and considered ways to protect themselves.

Additional to all these various workshops, the girls* had free time to make new friends. There was also a great range of leisure time activities every evening, such as watching films, going on a night hike with a campfire, and on Tuesday evening there was a party, which the girls* had prepared and organised independently.

On Wednesday, the 26th of October, at 2 p.m. everyone went home strengthened and happy. Many thanks to all participants, team members and speakers! We look forward to seeing you again next year. More insights are available on Instagram at @polbil_basa.

Written by Hannah Ingwersen