Tod und Gemeinschaft. Die politische Instrumentalisierung der Toten des deutschen Linksterrorismus 1971-1977

Lecture and discussion with Dr. Kevin Lenk (University of Münster). The event will take place live in the lecture hall. A stream will also be available via the YouTube channel of the Stuttgart City Archive (@stadtarchivstuttgart7583)

The history of German left-wing terrorism cannot be understood without the political instrumentalization of the people who died in the battle between the self-proclaimed "urban guerrilla" groups and the state. Politicians, the media and the radical left fought over both the victims and the dead terrorists and asked how their legacy should be assessed.

In his book, Kevin Lenk examines these battles over interpretation and traces how the dead were turned into heroes, martyrs or images of the enemy. He asks what effects the instrumentalization of the dead had on the conflict itself and the development of the political culture of the Federal Republic.

Kevin Lenk studied History and Cultural Studies at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and the University of Exeter from 2011 to 2016. He received his doctorate there in 2021 with this thesis. From October 2021 to September 2025, he was a research assistant at the Chair of Modern and Contemporary History (19th-21st centuries) at the University of Münster. Since October 2025, he has been a research assistant at the Chair of Contemporary History at the University of Heidelberg.

A joint event of the Stuttgart City Archive and the Württemberg State Library.