“Do they have traffic lights in Ireland?”

By Deidre Hutchison

“Do they have traffic lights in Ireland?” This was a naive question posed to my cousin on a visit to the United States in the 1980s. To my pre-teen intellect, this was the kind of insult that demonstrated the height of American ignorance my friends and I so often scoffed at. There was laughter at such a ludicrous concept.

The image of Ireland as backward bordered on comical and more often, irritating. After all, we were a nation with a deep history and a rich culture with literary giants like James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, and W.B. Yeats. Musically, we boasted the renowned talent of everything from The Dubliners and Thin Lizzy to the global phenomenon of U2. In our minds, we might be a small island, but we were extremely proud and accomplished.

8 March 2020Access AmericaEqual Rights Amendment, International Women's Day, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Suffrage, Voting, Women's RightsHenrike Kattoll

Sacrifice, Suffrage, and the Struggle for ERA: Celebrating International Women’s Day 2020

By Sabrina Völz

2020 marks the 100^th anniversary of the 19^th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that granted American women the right to vote. That is certainly reason to celebrate! But before you break open a bottle of sparkling wine, let’s review a few facts so we can put that momentous achievement into context for our readers less familiar with U.S. history.

Suffrage, the right to vote, was not extended to women at the same time it was granted to blacks in 1870. The first formal attempt to pass an amendment for woman suffrage – and there would be many – was introduced in 1878. For the next 40 years, that amendment was put to a vote in each session of Congress. Yes, 40 years! Let that sink in for a while…. Then, in 1918, the 19^th Amendment finally passed the House and the Senate in the following year and was ratified on August 26, 1920. But these are just a few of the details:

After that long struggle, however, many women did not actually take advantage of their right to vote in the 1920 and 1924 elections. Apparently, they thought they already had achieved equal rights. Does that sound familiar? It should. It is exactly what some of the people who oppose the Equal Rights Amendment are saying in 2020.

26 February 2020Access AmericaAmerican Memorial Library, Berlin, Berlin Wall, Books, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität LüneburgHenrike Kattoll

A Gift that Keeps Giving: The American Memorial Library in Berlin

By Svenja Dörflinger

“Today we are laying the cornerstone of the American Memorial Library. It is to be open to all who desire to enter and learn what men of all nations and all beliefs have thought and written. It is the freedom to learn, to study, to seek the truth. This is the essence of a free society. This is the source of our greatest strength.”

It’s the year 1952 – a hot June day in West Berlin. The city’s mayor, Ernst Reuter; U.S. High Commissioner for Germany, John McCloy; and American Secretary of State, Dean Acheson, are laying the cornerstone for the first American public library in Germany, the Amerika Gedenkbibliothek (American Memorial Library). In his speech, Acheson not only gives hope to the people of Berlin – who live in a divided city after a horrendous war – he also delivers a message that is perhaps more topical than ever.

12 February 2020Access AmericaDrew Hayden Taylor, Film Festival, Indian Horse, Indianthusiasm, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, N. Scott Momaday, Native Artistic Expression, Native Studies, Wilma MankillerHenrike Kattoll

Dreams Have No Borders: The 8th Indianer/Inuit North American Film Festival

By Maria Moss and Sabrina Völz

Acosia Red Elk and Drew Hayden Taylor. Photo credit: Sabrina Völz

Ask any Native Studies scholar in Europe, and they will be well aware of the European fascination with Native peoples of North America – a fascination that can be traced back to the novels of 19^th century writer Karl May who furthered the noble savage stereotype. The preeminent scholar for Native Studies, Hartmut Lutz, even coined a term for it: Indianthusiasm. When we heard about the 8^th Indianer Inuit Festival in Stuttgart from February 6-9, 2020, two questions came to mind: Would this Indianthusiasm come to life or be deconstructed at the festival? And is “Indianer” even a term that should still be used in German-speaking countries?

So we packed our bags and took the 5½-hour train ride from Lüneburg to Stuttgart to investigate. The festival’s program was quite extensive, encompassing documentaries, short films, feature films, children’s films, and music videos produced and directed by Indigenous artists from North America and beyond. Apart from visiting the film screenings, we also encountered fascinating people who gave us an inkling of the impressive variety of contemporary Native artistic expression.

15 January 2020Teaching ToolsHuman-Animal Studies, Keynotes, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Symposium, Teaching Human-Animal StudiesHenrike Kattoll

Teaching Human-Animal Studies: An Interdisciplinary Symposium

Animals are all around us. But what do we actually mean when we say “animal”? We are, of course, also animals: human animals.

In recent years, animals have entered university life, and scholars in fields as diverse as art, philosophy, and religious studies approach animals from different angles and methodologies. Animals are to some extent invisible until they enter the realm of the human. Then they become pets, cattle, or laboratory animals.

Are you curious? Could this subject enrich your teaching curriculum? Then why don’t you join us at Leuphana University from January 23 to 25. For further information, including registration details, see the program.

8 January 2020Best Books & Fabulous FilmsBlue Valentine, Leuphana, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Love Story, Movie, RomanceHenrike Kattoll

Blue Valentine : Endings, Beginnings, and Nothing in Between

By Kai-Arne Zimny

Blue Valentine: A Love Story (2011). That’s what it says on the movie poster. But is this what the movie is really about? A romantic, sustained, and profound lifelong bond between two people? Well, maybe it isn’t.

The present: Dean (Ryan Gosling) is an overall likeable, easygoing slacker. His job, painting houses, allows him the ‘luxury’ of drinking beer in the morning. He’s not a radiant source of bliss but being married to Cindy (Michelle Williams) and getting goofy with their little daughter Frankie (Faith Wladyka) is what he calls “his dream.” However, Cindy, a nurse, has higher aspirations. To her, Dean’s “dream” is nothing but an endlessly depressing nightmare.

The past: Charming high school dropout Dean works as a furniture mover and meets med student Cindy. To him, it’s love at first sight. To her, it’s so-so. He makes jokes, she laughs; he sings and plays the ukulele, she tap dances to the tunes. Her father hates him, but that’s not an issue because love conquers all – right?