Onkel Emma is Braunschweig's queer centre, a few steps behind the Michaeliskirche in the old town. It opened in November 2011 and is run by the Verein für sexuelle Emanzipation, the association that has spoken for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people in the city and the surrounding districts since 1989.
It works as a meeting space rather than a bar, though there is a counter with a volunteer behind it. A queer pub night runs weekly, and there is a café afternoon, a games night, readings and talks. More than a dozen groups use the rooms: a youth and student group for bi and pansexual people, one for queer people up to 27, a monthly meetup for the international community, a network of LGBTIQ teachers, a fetish group for men, and two trans groups, one of them for teenagers and young adults.
Counselling runs alongside the social programme. The centre is volunteer-run and funded by Braunschweig, Salzgitter, Wolfenbüttel and the neighbouring districts. The same association puts on the city's CSD, the Sommerlochfestival, and a queer film series at a cinema in town.
The facade is painted in rainbow stripes, so it is hard to miss once you are on the street.
The people in this picture are AI-generated.
