Hans
Hans Hofele, M. A., studierte Theater/Filmwissenschaften, Politik und Geschichte an der Ruhr-Universität Bochum. Zusammenarbeit mit dem Heroe Book Festival in Mombasa, dem African Book Festival in Berlin, den 72 heures de livre in Conakry. Er arbeitet als editor beim Öffentlich Rechtlichen Rundfunk in Frankfurt am Main. Mitarbeit an Dokumentationen, Reportagen, Beiträgen für ARD, arte, hr, und kika. Schreibt außerdem für verschiedene Zeitungen wie Frankfurter Neue Presse, Südwestpresse, Badische Zeitung, Stuttgarter Zeitung.
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Take the A-Train! Renaissance of the Train/der Eisenbahn im südlichen Afrika_ger/engl
Take the A-Train! Djibouti-Abbis Abbeba, Nairobi-Mombasa, Accra-Tema, Kampala-Kigali,...The railroad is back! After decades of lethargy and decay, there seems to be no stopping it. In many countries of Sub-Saharan Africa, there are a multitude of construction projects, some of which cross borders to advance the train. Not only goods, but also people are being moved. And they are riding along enthusiastically. This is a development that is very much under steam, as a veritable competition has picked up speed. Not all of the projects are successful, railroad construction is complex. Many projects are calculated purely in economic terms. But there is a great chance that the railroad will be more than an economic engine: a transnational vehicle that connects…
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Book Review: Töchter Haitis/Daughters of Haiti von/of Marie Vieux-Chauvet /1954 revisited
Töchter Haitis der haitanischen Autorin Marie Vieux-Chauvet ist beim Klassikerverlag Manesse in einer deutschen Erstausgabe mit umfangreichen Anmerkungen erschienen. Das Nachwort schrieb die bekannte Professorin und Essayistin Kaima L. Glover. Im Frühjahr 2023 wird ein weiteres Buch von Marie Vieux-Chauvet bei Manesse erscheinen. Von Hans Hofele FOR ENGLISH VERSION PLEASE SCROLL DOWN Die Töchter Haitis von Marie Vieux-Chauvet sind also eine Neuentdeckung. Mehr als 60 Jahre nach ihrer Veröffentlichung kann man es also auf Deutsch lesen. Ist es wert, dieses 1954 erschienene Buch neu zu entdecken? Eine Antwort liegt sicherlich in der wunderbaren Übersetzung von Nathalie Lemmens. Sie schafft den Spagat, den Charme der 50er Jahre Sprache mit dem aktuellen Farbton der heutigen Sprachwelt zu verschmelzen. Die Hürden des…
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Music of East Africa 1: Lilian Mbabazi_New EP from the Ugandan Pop Star_engl//ger
In paying tribute to the hard but often overlooked work of East African artistes from the early 2000s in Dem Days, Lilian inevitably reminds us how long she has been in the industry and how much talent we have in the region. As a huge fan, I am looking forward to the music videos to these songs, hoping they are in the works, and possibly, a whole album from the artiste in the near future.
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Frankfurt Book Fair 2022: The Fascination is back//ger_engl
The most recent Frankfurt Book Fair in 2022 lasted just under six days. It was the first face-to-face event in three years. Cultureafrica was at the fair. Talked to African exhibitors, was at readings, discussions and events around the book fair. It was full, it was exhausting, it was: great class! That's how you could describe the exciting days in October, because no matter if it was worth it for each individual. Almost everyone agreed on one thing: The Frankfurt Book Fair is alive!
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Leïla Slimani: Schaut wie wir tanzen//Look, how we dance // Book Review
With her Morocco trilogy, Leïla Slimani sheds light on a chapter of French and Moroccan history that has still not been dealt with. It is not about black and white painting, because the history, the connections and developments of both countries and their people, are far too complex. Slimani's family comes from the upper middle class of the country. One can therefore speak of profiteers of the colonial era. And she makes no secret of it in her books. It is a global phenomenon of the colonial era that among the many victims and losers, there were also the people who took advantage of the occupation system. Morocco is no exception. The wonderful thing about this trilogy is that…
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Diversity in Germany: Raus aus den Schubladen! Florence Brokowski-Shekete Book Review ger/engl
“Raus aus den Schubladen! Meine Gespräche mit Schwarzen Deutschen” von Florence Brokowski-Shekete ist das zweite Buch der Autorin, die mit dem autobiografischen Band “Mist, die versteht mich Ja!” einen überraschenden Erfolg hatte. In ihrem neuen Buch portraitiert sie zwölf Schwarze Deutsche, die in meist gewöhnlichen Berufen arbeiten. Von Hans Hofele FOR THE ENGLISH VERSION PLEASE SCROLL DOWN Das mag auf den ersten Blick nicht sehr spannend sein, ist aber genau das Gegenteil davon. Es wäre natürlich einfacher, Musiker:innen, Sportler:innen, Schauspieler:innen nach ihrem aufregenden Leben zu fragen. Über sie wird in den Medien auch häufiger berichtet. Schon in der Einleitung macht Florence Brokowski-Shekete an einem Beispiel deutlich, was von Schwarzen Deutschen erwartet wird, wenn sie sich unter das von weißem…
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Could This Be Love? Essays about Interracial Relations – Interview with Editor Stefanie Hirsbrunner – ger/engl
Im ersten Teil der dreiteiligen Büchervorstellung zum Thema Diversity in Germany geht es um den Essayband Kann das denn Liebe sein. Could This Be Love? Der Band versammelt fünfzehn Essays von verschiedenen Autor:innen aus Deutschland und Afrikanischen Ländern. Allen ist eines gemeinsam: Es geht um die Probleme, Hürden und Chancen von Interracial Relations. Privat, berührend, unterhaltsam, erschütternd . Das Buch ist im August 2022 beim Verlag InterKontinental erschienen und auf dem African Book Festival in Berlin auf zwei Podien vorgestellt worden. Im Interview sprach ich mit der Herausgeberin Stefanie Hirsbrunner, die gleichzeitig auch Teil des InterKontinental Verlags und des African Book Festivals in Berlin ist. The first part of the three-part book presentation on the topic of diversity in…
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The Woman King – Successfull Hollywood Drama about Dahomey Female Warriors
The Woman King is preparing to inherit the successful film The Black Panther. It has already grossed more than 50 million dollars at the cinemas. And yet the film has only just started. While in Black Panther it was the Wakanda, this time the "real" warrior women of the Agojie are the background for this film. Again it is a cast of American and African actors and actresses. This time, however, in an originally African story that borrows heavily from historical events in 19th century West Africa. In the kingdom of Dahomey at that time, the warrior women of the Agojie, protected by the royal family, brought about a groundbreaking system change in the perception and emancipation of women.…
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Culture Forecast September October 2022
In this section, I display upcoming events of culture events in Europe dealing with african topics and art events in african countries. If you have information about events, please send to hans_cultureafrica@yahoo.com. A lot, a lot. So much events! We start in Uganda, where the exciting Nyege Nyege Festival will happen from September 15 to 18 nearby spectacular Itanda Falls. This international electronic music highlight in East africa is highlighted by DJ Kampire. We hope, that no one has the idea to jump into the water(fall). If you google Itanda, you know why. In Nairobi, the Macondo Literary Festival is preparing to open its gates at Kenya National Theater. The last time it happened, was 2019. This year it…
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African Book Festival in Berlin 2022. A Report. engl/ger
Yesterday.Today.Tomorrow. That was the leitmotif of this year’s African Book Festival in Berlin. Finally without any restrictions, finally everything live and on the spot. The joy about this could be felt everywhere when you were out and about at the festival. Cultureafrica was media partner this year, but this should not distort the view when reporting about this event. By Hans Hofele/cultureafrica.net FÜR DEUTSCHE VERSION NACH UNTEN SCROLLEN But: Where does one start to report? About a literary event that is more than the sum of its events? Even in retrospect, it was a very intense long weekend. If you count the launch of InterKontinental on Thursday evening, it was four days in which you could get involved with…
