We are happy to introduce CO-WC's new partner Refugio Berlin, a Sharehaus organised by Berliner Stadtmission. Embracing 40 people from all over the world living together and supporting each other, it has become a place of openness and respect, giving and sharing. From now on, you will see our sign on the door of the unisex bathroom in the Café Refugio. With café manager Andreas Romeike, we talked about Refugio, all-gender bathrooms and CO-WC.

CO-WC — Hello Andreas, what is Refugio?

Andreas Romeike — We founded Refugio in 2015. The idea was to offer a place where people live together and share ideas — in the context of refugees. Integration is important, but it takes more than just filling large halls with 2,000 people in need; we needed to bring them together. Then the idea of this house was born. We have 40 people — 20 from Germany, 20 from other countries (not necessarily refugee-only). The café is a bit of the face of the house. It is an open place for people to communicate with each other, since we need a private atmosphere in the house itself. Here you see lots of people coming and going. You can get all questions answered, get to know others, or just have a cup of coffee. Actually, the café is part of our business model to run the house.

CO-WC — Refugio is a project of Berliner Stadtmission. Please tell us more about it.

Andreas Romeike — The Stadtmission is a part of the evangelical church, and it is one of the largest social organisations in Berlin. It has several refugee homes, the largest emergency shelter, and more. They are actively involved in social issues and offer help according to Christian values. This also applies to our house. We keep Christian values at heart; at the same time, this institution is inter-religious and multicultural. We see diversity as something positive.

CO-WC — The residents are half from Germany and half from other countries. We would love to know why.

Andreas Romeike — It is important that newcomers gain access to our culture and to local people for different kinds of support and social networks. At the same time, it is equally important for us to learn new things that people bring along: culture, language, religion, festivals, food, and so on. This is the primary concept of Sharehaus Refugio Berlin. Not only do we share festivals and talents, but also practical things like pens and books.

CO-WC — Let's talk about your restroom. You already have a unisex toilet. Was it planned?

Andreas Romeike — For legal reasons. This building used to be a retirement home. Everything was designed to accommodate persons with disabilities, including the toilets. There were three bathrooms in the beginning: one for men, one for women, one for the disabled. We decided to keep the one for the disabled as an all-gender bathroom on the ground floor — it is roomy, after all. Of course, you will find additional gendered bathrooms on the 1st and 2nd floor. This is mandatory according to the law.

CO-WC — All-too-common habits aren't easy to reflect on.

Andreas Romeike — Well, I'm used to it as well. It does not happen very often that I go to the ladies' toilet (laughs). We have women's toilets on the first floor and the men's toilet on the second floor. It was originally designed that way when it was a retirement home — the toilets were not separated because they were staff-only. And right next to the women's toilet there is the club "querstadtein," and the club "Givesomethingbacktoberlin" upstairs. In both places, we — men and women — work together. We simply use whatever is available. That is, when you go to the bathroom, you never know if a man or a woman is sitting next to you. I'm pretty sure I'm sometimes sitting next to women — it still feels a little strange somehow. You're still conditioned that way. I can't tell exactly why, but it's different. So I can imagine there are people like me out there.

CO-WC — Did you have problems with your all-gender restroom? Some cultures might be heavily burdened with gender norms.

Andreas Romeike — We have no problems. I think it's because we are multi-religious and multicultural in the house. We don't welcome people with strongly conservative or biased views. People coming to Refugio Berlin are open-minded and ready to learn about differences. I think the concept of a unisex toilet fits best here because it goes well with being "liberal" and "new." We are tolerant people and we do appreciate one another.

CO-WC — We put an emphasis on respect. Tolerance means: "OK, I get it, but I'm not in." There is always a distance. Here in Refugio, it's more than just tolerance. Living together and appreciating each other, you show us how integration should really work. This is closely linked to what CO-WC tries to do.

Andreas Romeike — Sure, it's a bigger thing to respect a person than to tolerate them. It might take numerous discussions and disputes to achieve it. We cherish the lives of others for being different — or despite being different. Once we learn to respect others, there has been real progress.

CO-WC — The CO-WC sign uses the old images of man and woman because we don't quite believe in "tabula rasa." The rigid framework of heterosexuality has gradually shown cracks and scars, but it is nevertheless vivid throughout our culture. The CO-WC sign repeats the traditional signs, but it questions and confuses their fixed meaning by making them vibrate. Our sign tells us that we are not finished products, but living beings continually discovering and changing. With our project, we expect to build bridges for all people of different orientations. One thing we have in common, as CO-WC speaks out loud: we are not over and done — we are in the flow.

Andreas Romeike — This is important to me too. There are differences and things you can't simply overlook. That's why I find it valuable to talk openly about this matter. If everything were tabula rasa, one wouldn't even need to discuss it at all.

CO-WC — What do you think about CO-WC?

Andreas Romeike — It's cool, really. I'm very curious about your app too. Of course, the legal restrictions are a disadvantage — cafés of a certain size are bound to have separated bathrooms. But I think it's a nice start to catch attention. It's a lovely sign and the idea behind it is great as well. When more places join the project and the sign is shown again and again in cafés or museums, for example, then it gains recognition.

// CONTACT

Refugio Berlin
Lenaustraße 3–4
12047 Berlin (Neukölln)
Germany

Opening hours: Tue–Sun: 10 am – 6 pm
Phone: +49 (0) 30 / 695 966 -521 or -522
E-Mail: refugio@berliner-stadtmission.de