Heimat - Home?

Topic

What do we really mean by “home”? Is it just sentimental nostalgia, or a concept that we need in making our society ready for the future? A dossier on a burning question.

The events of the last few years have given new urgency to the question of what “home” really is. Some people lose their home and have to search for a new one. Other people no longer feel secure in their home; they even fear it might change so much that they would no longer feel at home there themselves. Others, in contrast, are pleased to have “more world” in their society. How much of this is right, how much is wrong? Will we cope with it all, or will we barricade ourselves in? Are Muslims part of Germany, while Islam is not? Cultural institutions, museums, libraries, and archives are intervening in this debate. After all, their collections contain countless items that testify to contact between different cultures over the centuries. They can and must show how greatly these cultures benefited from mutual contact. Not an easy task – but a worthwhile one. Answers can be found.