The Reception of Audre Lorde – The Berlin Years 1984 to 1992 – Voices From Around The World
Dagmar Schultz, February 18, 2014 | Feminist Wire

When Audre first arrived in Berlin in 1984, I was the co-publisher of Orlanda Press (then sub rosa Frauenverlag) and we published several of Audre’s books in German. She came to Berlin each year until 1992 (except for 1985 when she was at the anthroposophic Lukas Clinic in Switzerland). One of Audre’s first questions upon arriving in Berlin was, “Where are the Black Germans?” She soon established close contact with Black women, some of whom attended her classes at the Free University of Berlin in 1984. As a result, we published the book Showing Our Colors: Afro-german Women Speak Out in 1986. more…

Audre Lorde: The Berlin Years
Donna Maria Alexander, Monday, March 10th, 2014 | Americas Studies

I first saw Audre Lorde: The Berlin Years (2012) when it was screened at the FWSA Biennial Conference in June 2013 at the University of Nottingham. The film focuses on the time the African American, feminist, lesbian, warrior, poet, Audre Lorde spent travelling back and forth to Berlin between 1984 and 1992, and her influence on the Afro-German community.

FIGHT THE PATRIARCHAL POWER
ILY GOYANES

Black woman, lesbian, militant feminist, librarian, poet, mother, warrior, cog in the radical machine of the late ’60s and early ’70s—Audre Lorde (1934-1992) was all of those things and more. Lorde was involved with both the black liberation and feminist movements, and her work transcends gender and race, speaking loud and proud to anyone who’ll listen. Think of her as the queer Maya Angelou—except she was the type to take a chain saw to the cage and let that motherfuckin’ bird sing free.
The Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival brings Lorde alive with Audre Lorde: The Berlin Years. The film discusses Lorde’s influence as an activist and writer, as well as her relationship to the German black diaspora, the development of the Afro-German movement, and the beginning of the anti-racist movement. Get your entitled ass to the Museum of Contemporary Art (770 NE 125th St., North Miami) for a reception from 6 to 7 p.m., followed immediately by a screening of the film. If you feel like pumping your fist in the air, donning a beret, and taking down the patriarchal establishment after the film, head to Luna Star Café (775 NE 125th St., Miami Shores) for a Q&A at 9 p.m. The screening is free with museum admission, which costs $5 for adults and $3 for seniors and students. Visit mocanomi.org or mglff.com.

…As a film created by a white German feminist colleague and comrade of Lorde’s, the film importantly includes many of Lorde’s imperatives to white feminist would-be allies, whom Lorde called on urgently during a time in Berlin, much like today, when neo-Nazi violence against people of color and immigrants made clear the genocidal persistence of white supremacy. Schultz shows Lorde talking to packed rooms of mostly white women in the tone of tough love and outrage. I know that many women of color who are tired of telling white feminists what Audre Lorde and many other feminists of color have already stated so clearly hope that our would-be allies will pay special attention to these moments in the film. … (download here)

You Should Go: Audre Lorde, Stand Tall Wine and Open Mic in Miami
The documentary itself is about Audre Lorde’s final years in Berlin and chronicles an untold chapter of Lorde’s life: her empowerment of Afro-German women, as she challenged white women to acknowledge the significance of their white privilege and to deal with difference in constructive ways. It’s going to be amazing because it will be one of the few social events that support a creative atmosphere for young queer women of color in Miami, where we can actually meet and talk to each other without screaming over booming club beats. Developing this new community will also tell our local gay organizations and businesses that there is an audience for this type of social event, and to produce more! We are having an open mic after to continue the creative vibe well into the evening!

kpfa Women's Magazine: Focus on Film • 
March 25, 2013—1:00 p.m.

Director Dagmar Schultz and co-author Ika Hügel-Marshall speak with Paola Bachetta about their film Audre Lorde: The Berlin Years. This unique film documents the time that Black feminist icon Audre Lorde spent in Berlin between 1984 and 1992. Her presence there helped to build a community of Afro-German women. She also challenged white feminists to acknowledge the significance of their white privilege and to deal with difference in constructive ways. The film will screen at Oakland's Parkway Theater on March 31.

The Shape of My Impact
Alexis Pauline Gumbs (Audre Lorde Papers, Spelman College Archive)

“I love the word survival, it always sounds to me li5e a promise.  It makes me wonder sometimes though, how do I define the shape of my impact upon this earth?” –reflection cut from an early draft of “Eye to Eye: Black Women, Hatred and Anger” by Audre Lorde (Audre Lorde Papers, Spelman College Archive) (download here)

'Audre Lorde: The Berlin Years 1984 to 1992': Interview with Dagmar Schultz, By Ellise Fuchs (download here)

Audre Lorde Film Presents Poetry in Action
… Laughing, Schultz recounted how Lorde later told her that upon meeting Schultz, Lorde thought of her as a “lesbian CIA agent.” Through Schultz’s persuasion, Lorde accepted a post at the German Free University, where she taught for a semester, giving writing workshops and helping to launch the Initiative of Black Germans (IBG). (download here)

TGLFF Torino Gay and Lesbian Film Festival 2012: Dagmar Schultz e Ika Huegel-Marshall
Published on Apr 24, 2012
Ellise Fuchs intervista Dagmar Schultz e Ika Huegel-Marshall regista e co-autrice del documentario "Audre Lorde - Die berliner Jahre 1984 bis 1992" | Ellise Fuchs interviews Dagmar Schultz and Ika Huegel-Marshall director and co-author of the documentary "Audre Lorde - Die berliner Jahre 1984 bis 1992"

New Audre Lorde film looks at her time in Berlin
by Steven Chaitman

"The Berlin Years" shows both the public and private side of Lorde, a self-described "Black, lesbian, feminist, mother, poet" in the years before she lost her battle with cancer in 1992. It features never-before-seen videos, images and audio recordings of Lorde collected by the filmmaker Dagmar Schultz a now-retired professor, publisher and author from Berlin. (download here)