We mourn the loss of Rita Süssmuth

Rita Süssmuth had a unique talent for building bridges—between people from different political parties, between politics and civil society, and between those with diverse perspectives and experiences. She was courageous, combative, motivating, and a role model for so many women. Rita Süssmuth helped launch the EAF, leveraging her political experience and reputation as President of the Bundestag to ensure we could launch our very first mentoring program in 1998: Preparing Women to Lead. She even served as a mentor herself. We are deeply grateful that we were able to walk a part of our path alongside her.

EAF founding president Barbara Schaeffer-Hegel was closely connected to her through their shared years in academia and their mutual interest in the then-nascent field of women’s and gender studies. Rita Süssmuth was the director of the Institute for Women and Society in Hanover before entering politics as an outsider. Much like Angela Merkel, she was often underestimated. However, as the republic’s first Minister for Women, she quickly set new standards, just as she did as Minister of Health, particularly in her approach to the AIDS crisis. Throughout her life, "Lovely Rita" remained open to new ideas and unconventional actions.  

She also shaped the office of the President of the Bundestag in her own unique way. Anyone who has seen the film "The Unbending" (Die Unbeugsamen) about the women politicians of the Bonn Republic will have seen firsthand the tenacity and chutzpah with which Rita Süssmuth asserted herself in the male-dominated world of politics, especially within her own party. Politics, she once said, is like a revolving door: those who go out one way will eventually come back in another.

Giving up was truly never an option for her. In her final years, achieving parity in politics and society became her primary goal. She was acutely aware of the different circumstances in which women live and the significant roles that social status and background play. Consequently, she was also a staunch advocate for the rights and opportunities of migrant men and women.

Until the very end, Rita Süssmuth was the driving force behind the #ParitätJetzt! initiative, which includes around 80 organizations, among them EAF Berlin. It was my great joy and honor to work with her repeatedly on this. It was deeply moving to witness how resolutely she fought for the cause, encouraging us fellow campaigners and urging us not to let up, even when she had become frail and was marked by her illness. "We have achieved a lot, but there is still a long way to go. For me, equality is not just a goal, but a daily task." This remains our shared mission, which we will now continue to carry forward in her name.

Helga Lukoschat

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