SchwuZ

Raus aus den Klappen

From the breakup of the Homosexuelle Aktion Westberlin, a center was born on June 26, 1977, that did not want to hide. The SchwulenZentrum, soon known as SchwuZ, occupied a factory floor on Kulmer Straße in Schöneberg—after an initial push on Dennewitzstraße, in an apartment that Rosa von Praunheim had rented under his film studio—and opened to anyone who wanted to enter. The motto of those years was clear: Raus aus den Klappen, rein in die Straße. Political plenaries were organized there, the first Saturday nightclubs under the name Männerfang, and, in 1979, the club's environment promoted the first Christopher Street Day in Berlin. The magazine Siegessäule also came out of that network. Over time, Blondie, Boy George, Erasure, or Rick Astley took the stage; Berlin formations like Rosenstolz or Die Tödliche Doris rehearsed and were forged in its rooms.

From basement in Kreuzberg to cathedral in Neukölln

The venue didn't stop moving. In 1987 it moved to a floor on Hasenheide, next to Südstern. On February 18, 1995, it opened in the basement of Mehringdamm 61, in Kreuzberg, where it remained for eighteen years, with regular access through Café Melitta Sundström and in the same building as the Schwules Museum. On November 16, 2013, it inaugurated its last own home: the former bottle warehouse of the Kindl brewery, at Rollbergstraße 26, Neukölln, at the gates of Schillerkiez. A 25-hour party with dozens of DJs on three dance floors sealed the move. The industrial venue, of about 1,600 square meters and capacity for up to 1,100 standing people, was articulated in three rooms: the Kathedrale, main dance floor of about 400 m² with a stage; the Salon; and the Pepsi Boston Bar, named in memory of one of the founding mothers, who died of AIDS. Pop, indie, house, electro, and schlager coexisted with concerts, drag, debates, and lesbian nights. The club professionalized in the late nineties and, during the pandemic, joined United We Stream.

Blackout in Neukölln and a name that does not go out

Starting in 2023, the numbers stopped adding up: high fixed costs, monthly deficits, and an attempt at cuts that was not enough. In July 2025, the management companies filed for insolvency; on November 1, 2025, the Neukölln venue closed. The SchwuZ e.V. did not dissolve the project. Since May 2026, it has returned to programming parties, concerts, and community events in other venues—the relaunch was celebrated at the Metropol on Nollendorfplatz—while looking for a new permanent space. The official website says it without euphemism: they are building a new SchwuZ.