Erinnern heißt verändern — Hanau, 19. Februar 2020

On 19 February 2020, in Hanau, nine young people were murdered in a racist terror attack. Many others were injured and traumatised. Since that day, the survivors and the families of the victims, and their supporters in the Initiative 19. Februar Hanau and beyond, have struggled for commemoration, clarification, justice, and accountability. 

“The truth is in this room,” said one of the relatives at the 2022 premiere of this exhibition, which was created in collaboration between the independent research agencies Forensic Architecture and Forensis, the survivors, the relatives of the victims, and the Initiative 19. Februar Hanau. We —the relatives and survivors—have been fighting for answers now for more than four years. We have carried out tasks that the authorities should have carried out, revealing new information about what happened before, during, and after the attack, including significant failures by the police and the state.

Still, our demands for justice have been met with a deafening silence. There have been no criminal trials for the events in Hanau. Our legal appeals have been consistently rejected. The committee of inquiry in the Hessian state parliament has now concluded, yet its final report leaves open questions unanswered. Nobody has taken political responsibility. There have been no political consequences. So we say: there can be no final report!

Since 19 February 2020, we have investigated and reconstructed, we have confronted politicians with our questions, and kept the memory of our loved ones alive, and public. This ongoing work gave rise to this exhibition.

In one room, we present the most comprehensive reconstruction of the night, through timelines, video investigations, and audio contributions. The second part of the exhibition traces the longstanding struggle of relatives, survivors and their supporters for remembrance and accountability.

As part of the exhibition “Three Doors”—co-produced with Haus der Kulturen der Welt Berlin and Frankfurter Kunstverein—these exhibits were shown for the first time at the Frankfurter Kunstverein in summer 2022. Since then, our work has been exhibited in Berlin, Hanau, and Stuttgart.