MAKKABI is much more than just a sports association. Sport connects, regardless of religion, origin or skin color. MAKKABI brings Jewish and non-Jewish athletes together, creating a platform for getting to know different cultures. This makes an important contribution to the positive reputation of Jews living in Germany.
Due to Germany's history, which was shaped by the Second World War, the reestablishment of the Jewish sports clubs was of particular importance. The awareness of Jewish life in Germany should change. Thanks to the Jewish sports club, which is open to all denominations, the negative history was able to take a back seat and the positive togetherness to the fore. In 1965, MAKKABI Germany was re-established by the Jewish community with the help of domestic politics and sport-political support. The chairman of Central Council of Jews in Germany Werner Nachmann sel. A. was elected President of MAKKABI Germany in 1965 and the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) accepted MAKKABI as an association with special tasks. Since 2013 is Alon Meyer now President of the Jewish Gymnastics and Sports Association and contributes with the entire MAKKABI family to the growth of Jewish sports in Germany.
Our next goal is to get even more public. The important work in the local clubs and the Jewish-German national team should be publicized more. The presence in the media and in German society should be increased so that MAKKABI has even more opportunities to get involved and win fans.
MAKKABI Germany is diverse
We are firmly convinced that a society should, must and can endure that people are different! Germany is diverse, colourful, interreligious and intercultural.
MAKKABI Germany not only creates awareness of this, but actively promotes it. As an association with special tasks in the German Olympic Sports Confederation, it is precisely this task that makes MAKKABI what it is: taking a stance against anti-Semitism, racism and any kind of xenophobia and treating each other on a respectful level. Sport is the ideal tool for building bridges and communicating democratic values such as integration, inclusion and to promote the fight against anti-Semitism and racism.
Sustainability
The Jewish sports association MAKKABI Germany is particularly concerned with communicating healthy environmental awareness in sport. We try to make a contribution to sustainable sport by extensively avoiding plastic in courses, major events and other sporting events and by using public transport.
Already in 2018 at the Junior Games, MAKKABI Germany extensively refrained from using plastic cups. As an alternative, we used reusable drinking bags that were distributed to the participants. The measure met with great enthusiasm among the 12-18 year olds. At the MDG 2020, the foldable bottles will again be part of the athletes' interior.
Since 2019 we have been paying more attention to our biological footprint at MAKKABI major events and have consistently avoided single-use crockery and cutlery. The successes show that switching to recyclable materials is worthwhile. In relation to previous years, in which around 30 garbage bags (120 l) were needed during the tournament days, we now manage with around 6. Also, in the past it took our organizers around 1 hour to collect the rubbish, but now it's a maximum of 15 minutes.
sports and environment
As a sports association with special tasks, MAKKABI Germany is determined to make the greatest possible contribution to reducing CO2‑Emission to make. After avoiding plastic cups and disposable cutlery at major events, the use of environmentally friendly means of transport is also a highly topical issue for us.
MAKKABI Germany makes sure that sports facilities and accommodation are within walking distance as early as the start of planning for major sporting events. This is also the case for the upcoming MAKKABI Germany Games in May 2020. Here it is hardly more than 15 minutes on foot between the main area and the accommodation. In addition, we inform the participants before the start of the journey that the travel allowance is based on the incentive system of the railway. This promises a comparatively higher travel allowance for rail travelers than for those traveling by car. In addition, MAKKABI will cover the costs in full when booking the super saver price of the railway.
Internally, the Jewish Sports Association also uses environmentally friendly means of transport. The employees of the association office reach their workplace by bike, train or electrically powered vehicles, among other things.
Fair Play
At MAKKABI, great importance is attached to the collegial behavior of the members on and off the sports field. Respect and tolerance towards our teammates and opponents is our top priority.
In a current project with the Berlin Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf district office, we are concentrating on the fight against increasing violence - especially against referees - on the football field. “Clubs Against Violence” is a video campaign in which amateur sports clubs in Berlin share their personal impressions and experiences in order to sensitize teammates and spectators to violence on the soccer field.
Prevention of Sexualized Violence
- Contact: Christine Schuessler
- Contact: Alfi Goldenberg
- + 49 (0) 69 780592-76
- christine.schuessler@makkabi.de
- alfi.goldenberg@makkabi.de
Antisemitism Prevention
The problem of anti-Semitic attitudes in society as a whole is revealed time and again in verbal, visual or physical discrimination, particularly in “Brennglas Sport”. In the context of football in particular, discriminatory behaviors that have been pushed aside from other social areas are sometimes tolerated without objection. This situation, which is no longer acceptable, is addressed by the model project "No Space for Antisemitism", which has existed as part of the federal initiative "Democracy Life" of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ) since the beginning of 2020.
We see ourselves as a team that examines anti-Semitism in (soccer) sport from multiple perspectives and develops clear strategies for action. The experiences of the MAKKABI local groups help us with regard to dealing with anti-Semitic incidents. Based on interdisciplinary expertise in the areas of educational work, organized sport, German-Israeli relations and other relevant subject areas, we strive to implement a sustainable and respectful “culture of sport”. The team consists of Luis Engelhardt (project manager), Janik Trummer, Lasse Müller (all Frankfurt), Sebastian Mohr (Düsseldorf) and Kenan Dogan (Stuttgart). Sabena Donath (Head of the Education Department of the Central Council of Jews in Germany) is providing technical support for the project.
