The Yellow Permit. Girl trafficking from 1860 to 1930

Exhibition and symposiums

Human trafficking and forced prostitution are highly topical issues which have a long tradition. International girl trafficking, as it was called at the end of 19th century, became increasingly prevalent with the rising wave of Eastern European immigrants to Western Europe and further to the New World. For young Jewish girls in Eastern Europe, it was practically the only way to escape the Stetl; if they wanted to live in cities like Moscow, Odessa or Warsaw, they had to apply for a “yellow permit”, allowing them to work as prostitutes. Emigration to the New World was also a risky undertaking for many young women. To earn the money for their journey, they started by looking for employment as maidservants or in the hospitality industry, but often ended up in brothels. The stories of these itinerant girls comprise an unwritten chapter of modern immigration history. The New Synagogue Berlin - Centrum Judaicum Foundation and the German Emigration Center in Bremerhaven had teamed up to develop and simultaneously displayed exhibitions at their premises which shed light on these forgotten stories. Using photos, travelogues, diaries and police reports, and accompanied by literature, music and film presentations, the exhibition portrayed “slice-of-life” stories of those who were involved in the sex trade. The exhibition was also be supplemented by a publication and a symposium on the subject “Migration and the Sex Industry 2012” in Kiev and Warsaw.

Artistic directors / curators: Simone Eick, Irene Stratenwerth, Sofia Onufriv, Katrin Quirin

Contact

Deutsches Auswandererhaus

Columbusstraße 65

27568 Bremerhaven

www.dah-bremerhaven.de (external link, opens in a new window)

 

Stiftung Neue Synagoge Berlin - Centrum Judaicum

Oranienburger Str. 28/30

10117 Berlin

centrumjudaicum.de (external link, opens in a new window)