By Danilo Gladow
In the long-standing dispute over Mohrenstraße, there is finally clarity: the new naming is legitimate. That was decided by the Berlin administrative court. In the future it will be called Anton-Wilhelm-Amo-Straße – against the opposition of many residents.
It was not about the question of whether the name derived from “Mohr” is racist or not. But: Can the Mitte district rename the street against the will of the residents? The administrative court ruled: legally permissible! And thus rejected a model lawsuit by the resident, historian and journalist Götz Aly (76).
According to the court, the rights of local residents are not violated by the new name. In any case, the district would have a wide discretion with street names, Judge Wilfried Peters (60) let the plaintiffs know at the beginning of the hearing. On the other hand, the legal possibilities of individual citizens are extremely limited.
Historian and main plaintiff Götz Aly (76): “I have the feeling that today the court made up for what the Mitte district office unfortunately missed – we were taken seriously and heard. Before today nobody really wanted that. I am in favor of keeping the name Mohrenstraße because it is part of an important historical inner-city ensemble. It’s part of our urban history – it shouldn’t just be erased. The reason given by the district was that the name would no longer fit into our current understanding of democracy. This statement is so soft that it cannot be taken as a legal basis.” Photo: Sven Meissner
The Greens, SPD and Leftists in the district decided to change the name in 2021 because the name “Mohrenstrasse” was colonialist and racist.
Result: more than 1000 objections and 200 official complaints. The district turned them all away, but seven residents objected. They see no public interest in the renaming. In addition, the district office did not sufficiently consider their private interests when exercising their discretion.
The judge rejected this criticism: “You filed a complaint, the district rejected it. Legally, this is a form of participation.” But he also warned the district: “The dialogue with the residents should have been conducted.”
The constituency MP Lucas Schaal (33, CDU) is outraged: “A renaming over the heads is an absurdity. The whole process went in such a way that the people involved were not taken along.”
Resident Bodo Berwald (81): “I am complaining here today because we residents were not included in the decision. Keeping the street name would not harm the city of Berlin. If that were the case, a damage forecast would have taken place in the last 300 years. Nobody bothered about the name. I can say about the court that our request was treated very unemotionally” Photo: Sven Meissner
The end of the line for Mohrenstraße – but Judge Peters made it clear: “We have not decided whether there could be good reasons to keep the name or to change it. Historical and political reasons were not part of the decision.”
The renaming is formally and legally the responsibility of the authority. This administrative act was not arbitrary and erroneous. That is the decisive point for the judgment, which is not yet final. An appeal was not admitted.
The renaming of the subway station of the same name was postponed by the court. Whether the BVG joins the name change remains open for the time being.
Anton Wilhelm Amo, who gave the street its new name, was the first known philosopher and scholar of African descent in Germany in the 18th century.
Why is Mohrenstrasse called that?
► First theory: The Prussian Major Otto Friedrich von der Groeben left for today’s Ghana in 1682 to organize the Fort Großfriedrichsburg, which still exists today. When he returned home in 1683, among his trophies were a number of Africans, who were called Moors at the time. They lodged in an inn outside the city, which is why the street there was called Mohrenstrasse.
► Second theory: The soldier king Friedrich Wilhelm I, who ended the old slave trade and colonial projects, brought in African musicians, whom he loved like his tall fellows. The street is said to have been given its name in 1706. In the newly created Friedrichstadt, between Kronenstrasse and Jägerstrasse, new streets were built on the site of the Electoral Gardens from 1688 – including Mohrenstrasse.