Natasha Kelly, who settled in Osnabrück in northwest Germany with her 12-year-old daughter, was served an eviction notice in December, her lawyer Simone Singer told AFP.
She confirmed a report in the Tageszeitung newspaper which quoted the owner of the building as stating: “Some of the other tenants are unhappy about the colour of your skin and your personal situation as a single mother. Some of the elderly ones have been here for 40 years and I cannot ask them to leave.”
Singer said it was the first time she had seen “somebody express such incriminating ideas so freely in writing.” Kelly was suing the landlord for discrimination and demanding €10,000 ($15,800) in damages, the lawyer said.
Kelly, who grew up in Germany, told the Tageszeitung: “I have been turned away before when I tried to rent an apartment because I am black, but I have never been thrown out because of it afterwards. If it were just me, I would have stayed and seen this out to the bitter
end, but I do not want my child to grow up in a racist environment.”
Last year Kelly launched a magazine called “X-Magazin” which deals with black people’s experiences in Germany.
Please whitelist us to continue reading.