Berlin’s ‘Care Islands’ Offer Lifeline Amid Looming Daycare Strikes
The idea grew from earlier efforts by parents like Constanze Klunker, who co-founded the group Unicorn Seeks Education. During past strikes, she arranged childcare at her local church to back educators’ demands. This time, the emergency hubs expand that model, with churches, community centres, and other spaces opening their doors to children on strike days.
The project involves a mix of groups, including Verdi union members, the Berlin Red Cross, and local neighbourhood initiatives. Verdi secretary Matthias Böhme has publicly supported the scheme, arguing it reduces stress on parents and encourages solidarity with the strike. Yet tensions remain, as some Verdi members refuse to collaborate with communist activists also backing the hubs.
The League of Communists and its Neighbourhood Committees see the hubs as more than just childcare—they frame them as tools for grassroots organising and working-class resistance. Despite differing motives, the groups have united to offer supervised activities for children while daycare staff stay off the job.
The hubs will launch on December 18, the same day as the planned public-sector strike. They aim to provide a safety net for parents while keeping pressure on employers to meet educators’ demands. Whether the collaboration holds—or fractures under political differences—remains to be seen.
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