Beyond the Divide: Incorporating East German Experiences in Sociological Teaching

German sociology is committed to a differentiated consideration of various forms of social inequality. Taking gender, origin and migration history into account is a matter of course today. In contrast, the population of the former GDR was neglected by sociology for a long period of time. As a result, no differentiation is made Sociological research and teaching also reproduces existing power differences. In my lecture, I will point out the existing gaps and raise awareness of the need for sociological research and teaching that is sensitive to the East: a so-called ‘critical westness’.