Alice Hasters

“Those who claim not to be racist have an enormous distance to fall.”
Alice Hasters is a German journalist, bestselling author and podcaster who through her work sets a clear signal against racism in Germany.
In daily interaction, Alice Hasters did not recognise the behaviour of White people as racist for a long time. Remarks heard may not seem overtly far-right or hateful, but they do highlight a power imbalance that perceives Whites as the norm and excludes Blacks as “others”. The term “othering”, for which there is no direct equivalent in contemporary German, describes this state of affairs quite precisely. In 2019, she published her first book Was weiße Menschen nicht über Rassismus hören wollen, aber wissen sollten (What White People Don’t Want to Hear about Racism, But Should Know) in which she gives autobiographical insights as a victim of socalled everyday racism. Her aim: admission and self-reflection on the part of each and everyone.
Pointedly and patiently, she explains why questions such as “Where do you come
from?”, which may seem harmless at first glance, are ultimately of racist origin and shape power inequality. Her long-seller has its finger on the pulse and strikes at the uneasiness of an entire society. Confrontating one’s own racism is often first met with resistance, relativisation and rejection—a clear sign that the problem is deeply rooted in Germany and far from being dealt with. In addition to her success as an author, Hasters works as a journalist for RBB (Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg, Eng.:
Berlin-Brandenburg Broadcasting) and the television news programme Tagesschau
(Eng.: Daily Review). In addition, together with Maximiliane Häcke, she discusses current topics from politics, pop culture and society in her successful podcast Feuer & Brot (Fire & Bread).