BERLIN, GERMANY - JUNE 22: Felicitas Karrer and Janina Hell during the Frauen100 X Politics Dinner at Hotel Adlon on June 22, 2022 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Franziska Krug/Getty Images for hell & karrer Communications)

How constructive the world could be if women in particular had power. A dinner hosted by the “Women 100” initiative in the Hotel Adlon on Thursday evening provided a foretaste. The modern feminist platform brought together top politicians from different parties who reported on their experiences.

“When it comes to filling an attractive job, women first ask themselves 48 hours to think about whether they can do it at all,” SPD MP Michelle Müntefering observed realistically. “Men only need a few seconds to know they are suitable.”

The logical conclusion that women need to help each other more and encourage each other more ran like a red thread through the evening. The women in the conservatory, which was decorated with pink flower arrangements, agreed that solidarity does not have to stop at party lines. This is especially true when it comes to peace and security.

When women are portrayed in the media, appearance plays a role twice as often as it does for men, said entrepreneur Verena Pausder right at the beginning. The fact that they just can’t stand that came up again and again in this circle. It is particularly annoying when men whose shoulders are covered with dandruff reduce women to alleged deficits in their appearance on talk shows.

FDP woman Agnes-Strack-Zimmermann realistically advises not to see a competitor in other women: “We should pay attention to how solidary we are when it comes to sharing.”

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For Sawsan Chebli from the SPD, the realization that one cannot be loved by everyone came gradually. The solidarity she experienced was sometimes greater from other parties than from her own. Her conclusion: “Every woman in a managerial position has to raise other women. Only that changes something.”

CDU politician Julia Klöckner reported how she was repeatedly plagued by stereotypes, mistaken for the waitress, shrunk to a temporary role as wine queen. For a long time she was still against the women’s quota: “Not anymore!” It annoys her “when it gets louder in the room as soon as a woman takes the floor”.

Dorothee Bär from the CSU received a lot of praise for her talent for solidarity. The “feminist of experience” wants to help ensure “that not every generation has to fight the same battles”. The Green Party chairwoman Ricarda Lang and Ursula Karven were also present at the dinner. The actress launched a signature campaign against violence and harassment in the workplace last year. The initiative is organized by the agency owners Janina Hell and Felicitas Karrer.