Goals and tasks:
In order to fight together for remembrance, justice, clarification, and consequences, supporters, survivors, and relatives joined forces after the racist terrorist attack to form the February 19 Hanau Initiative.
Through its tireless fight for a full investigation, the initiative achieved the establishment of a parliamentary inquiry committee in the Hessian state parliament (parlamentarischer Untersuchungsausschusses im hessischen Landtag) in 2021, thereby significantly advancing civil society’s investigation of the terrorist attack. The key findings are published on the website www.kein-abschlussbericht.org.
In addition to demanding clarification, the initiative is fighting for adequate care for relatives and survivors under the slogan “justice.” In May 2020, the Initiative 19. Februar Hanau opened the space “140qm gegen das Vergessen” (140 square meters against forgetting), a place for counseling, networking, and support where people can talk about grief, experiences of racism, and solidarity in a safe environment.
In addition, the initiative regularly organizes memorial events on February 19 and accompanies a wide variety of group visits and events. Under the hashtag #saytheirnames, the initiative has made the names of the victims known throughout Germany and established a new form of self-determined remembrance.
The collaboration between the Initiative 19. Februar Hanau and Forensic Architecture/Forensis has resulted in the exhibition Three Doors, which examines the central failures and mistakes made by the security authorities on the night of the incident.
The play “And Now Hanau” by director Tuğsal Moğul was also created in close cooperation with the initiative. It addresses the chain of official failures from the perspective of those affected, calls for a thorough investigation, and asks about the consequences.