Bremen's Eiswette charity event refused to invite Bremen's substitute mayor because she is a woman. The president of the men's club said "even the pope wouldn't have been invited if he were a woman."
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Assanimoghaddam
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An all-male club in the northern city-state of Bremen caused a stir over the weekend when it left a major name off its invite list for a charity event — because she was a woman.
Karoline Linnert, who is the finance senator and one of the city's mayors, was not invited to take part in Bremen's annual "Eiswette" ("ice bet") even though she is the designated representative for Bremen's primary mayor, Senate President Carsten Sieling.
Sieling couldn't attend the event on Saturday because he was in Poland attending the funeral of Pawel Adamowicz, the recently murdered mayor of Gdansk.
"The gentlemen of the Eiswette place great emphasis on etiquette. But protocol suddenly doesn't play a role any more when — horror of horrors — the official substitute for the [male] mayor of Bremen is actually the [female] mayor of Bremen," Linnert wrote on Facebook on Friday.
Karoline Linnert criticized the club for discriminating against women "under the guise of tradition"Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Jaspersen
Since 1829, the men's club in charge of the Eiswette takes bets in January on whether or not the local Weser River has frozen or not.
The event culminates in a charity dinner which collects money to donate to the German Maritime Search and Rescue Association (DGzRS).
All-men club dismisses 'gender-gaga'
Federal ministers and diplomats are among the hundreds of attendees at the dinner, who are required to be dressed in smoking jackets.
"We're celebrating 100 years of women's suffrage in Germany — and the Eiswette still believes it is right to exclude women under the guise of tradition," Linnert wrote.
Bremen's interior senator, Ulrich Mäurer, declined to attend the event in solidarity with Linnert.
Prior to Saturday's charity event, the president of the club dismissed criticism over the decision.
"We are a gentlemen's club and don't participate in this gender-gaga," club head Patrick Wendisch told the German daily Bild.
Bustling Bremen and the nearby port city of Bremerhaven make up Germany's smallest federal state. It's all about Hanseatic traditions and a cosmopolitan atmosphere.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/K. Nowottnick
The Town Musicians of Bremen
The Town Musicians of Bremen is a famous folktale by the Brothers Grimm. The story is about four aging animals leaving their homes to seek their fortune in Bremen. Local legend says that touching the Bremen Town Musicians statue in the city center will bring good luck.
Image: Sina Schuldt/dpa/picture alliance
Guardian of the city
This Bremen statue shows Roland, a loyal knight who once served under Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne. It was erected in the city's market square in 1404. Legend has it that Bremen will remain free and independent as long as Roland stands watch over the city. The statue and historic town hall are protected UNESCO World Heritage sites.
Image: Sina Schuldt/dpa/picture alliance
Weser Renaissance architecture
Seventeenth century artists carved countless intricate figures and reliefs into the sandstone facade of Bremen's City Hall . Among them is the city's famous key symbol, which later became a motif in the coat of arms. Bremen is revered for its Weser Renaissance architecture.
Image: Ingo Wagner/picture alliance
Risk it and win
The former Schütting guild house served Bremen's merchants and traders for nearly 600 years. Today, it houses Bremen's chamber of commerce. In 1899, the Low German inscription "buten un binnen wagen un winnen," which translates to "outside and in, risk it and win," was added to the building's portal.
Image: picture alliance/dpa
Schaffermahlzeit banquet
Every year, 100 captains, 100 merchants and 100 guests gather at Bremen City Hall for the traditional Schaffermahlzeit banquet. The all-male tradition was introduced in 1545 as a means to gather together the city's captains, ship owners and merchants. On February 13, 2015, women were invited to the dinner for the first time in history.
Image: Sina Schuldt/dpa/picture alliance
Bremen's oldest quarter
Charming half-timbered houses and quaint stores make up Bremen's enchanting Schnoor quarter, located just a few hundred meters from the market square. It is the city's oldest neighborhood and ideal for a leisurely stroll.
Image: Schoening/picture alliance
A trading hub
The Weser River connects Bremen to the North Sea via Bremerhaven, some 60 kilometers (37 miles) further north. The river was a key trade route. Over the centuries, ships would bring raw materials back to Bremen from northern Europe, where they would in turn load fabrics and ironware. Bremen became a member of the Hanseatic League, a powerful medieval alliance of merchants and cities, in 1358.
Image: Sina Schuldt/dpa/picture alliance
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven has one of the largest container ports in Europe, handling some 50 million tons of cargo every year. Yet Bremerhaven is also a key hub for passenger ships. Its Columbus Cruise Center ranks among the most modern passenger terminals in the world. The city is also home to the Atlantic Hotel Sail City, which resembles a giant sail.
Image: Jochen Tack/picture alliance
Bremerhaven's German Emigration Center
Bremerhaven's German Emigration Center is dedicated to the history of Germans who migrated abroad, especially to the US. It's here that in the 19th and 20th centuries, millions of passengers boarded ships bound for the American continent and elsewhere seeking to build new lives.
Image: DW
Bremerhaven's Klimahaus museum
Bremerhaven's harbor district features a dazzling museum dedicated to climate change. The stylish building resembles the shape of a ship and its exterior is comprised of 4,000 glass panes. Inside, visitors can learn about the impact of global warming on nature and mankind.
