Kottbusser Tor

 

The “Kotti” is much more than just a major intersection in Berlin-Kreuzberg. Where six streets and three subway lines intersect, a typical, colorful Berlin microcosm has emerged. In the 1960s and 1970s, the neighborhood underwent extensive redevelopment: old buildings gave way to concrete complexes like the Neues Kreuzberger Zentrum (NKZ), which did not solve social problems but rather exacerbated them. The neighborhood grew into a place where poverty, drug problems, and homelessness met in a very confined space. For many people of Turkish descent who came to Germany as guest workers in the 1970s, Kotti became their new home. The shops, bakeries, and cafés in the surrounding streets reflect this diverse culture, which has proved formative for present-day Kreuzberg. But Kotti is not just the hotspot for crime that many consider it to be; it has always been and remains a place of resistance: against exorbitant rents, racism, and social inequality. Amid vegetable shops, late-night stores, bars, and social initiatives, it remains a place of extremes: loud, chaotic, and always on the move.

1 - The SÜDBLOCK at Kottbusser Tor is a queer cultural and neighborhood center. It brings together political discussions, art, and community work.

2 - CRITICAL MASS originated in the 1990s and is an integral part of Berlin’s protest culture. On the last Friday of every month, hundreds of people cycle together through the city, starting in Kreuzberg. The goal is to raise awareness and promote safe mobility for cyclists.

3 - CELALETTIN KESIM (1943–1980) was a teacher, trade unionist, and communist. He was murdered on January 5, 1980, by Turkish fascists and fundamentalists at Kottbusser Tor. A memorial plaque commemorates him as a symbolic figure of anti-fascist resistance in Kreuzberg.

4 - RIO REISER was the singer of the band “Ton Steine Scherben” and lived in Kreuzberg. The band was active in the left-wing alternative scene around Kotti. Their song “Rauch-Haus-Song” tells the story of the 1971 squatting of the Georg-von-Rauch-Haus in Kreuzberg.

5 - Sven Regener’s novel HERR LEHMANN is set in Kreuzberg in the late 1980s. It describes the spirit of the times shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall. The book was successfully adapted into a film in 2003 and is considered a cult portrait of old West Berlin.

6 - Berlin’s street art scene is shaped by graffiti collectives such as “1UP,” “PMS,” “ADHS,” and “Bio Gang.” 1UP (One United Power) is Berlin’s best-known collective, active since the early 2000s, and became famous for daring stunts and large-scale train graffiti. Street artist Mr. Paradox Paradise is known for his red-and-blue lettering, which he sprays in Kreuzberg and elsewhere in hard-to-reach places such as rooftops.

7 - Director QUENTIN TARANTINO shot parts of the film *Inglourious Basterds* in Berlin in 2008 and lived in Kreuzberg for a while, which served as his creative hub during production.

8 - GÜNTHER KRABBENHÖFT became known for his elegant style and outfits. He lives in Kreuzberg and is a local icon of the fashion and club scene. The media call him “Berlin’s most stylish grandpa.”

9 - THEODOR FONTANE (1819–1898) completed an apprenticeship as a pharmacist in Berlin. He later worked as a pharmaceutical instructor at Bethanien Hospital in Kreuzberg. Only then did he turn to writing and became Berlin’s most famous representative of literary realism.

10 - SO 36 refers to the old postal district in eastern Kreuzberg. The club of the same name on Oranienstraße is a legendary hub of music and subculture; the migrant youth gang “36 Boys” shaped the neighborhood’s street art and graffiti culture and fought turf wars against neo-Nazis.

Did you know …
… that Kottbusser Tor itself no longer exists? In its place once stood a excise gate in Berlin’s city wall, leading toward the city of Cottbus. The gate has not existed since 1860, but its name has remained.