One goal of Safer Spaces is to make experiences visible not as individual but as shared reality. This can lead to individual and collective self-empowerment and ability to act, everyday management and political organization. Safer spaces can thus be places of political and structural change.
The concept of the Safer Space originated in the 60s in the USA. There, queer and black communities created spaces in which, on the one hand, they experienced physical protection from police violence and, on the other hand, rooms in which they could exchange ideas about taboo topics. The concept was further developed and adapted in different continents and communities.
A place can never be safe and empowering for all people, so it is important for us at ROSA to make it clear that different concepts of safer spaces are needed to retain political power.
ROSA Connecting Community
ROSA Connecting Community (RoCoCo) is the Migrant Self-Organization within ROSA. With an online network, language courses and public relations, the ROSA Connecting Community forms an important part of ROSA.
What RoCoCo offers
Online language courses for women
German + English
Online
All level welcome
Online Information and Exchange Groups
Information and exchange groups on topics such as everyday life in Europe, Health, Social Service, Migration and Orientation
Training & Support for Translators
Translators who participate in solidarity work in refugee camps can get mental support, information and exchange
Social media
Using social platforms to make our voices loud and our stories visible
Our Insta:
@rococo_rosaconnectingcommunity
Safer Space Greece
A mobile port of call for women on the run
Since 8. March 2022 is the Rolling Safespace on the peninsula of Attica in Greece and offers a mobile contact point with medical advice, workshops and child care at four different refugee accommodations.
In 2025 alone, more than 5000 women visited the mobile Safer Space. Our crew consists of 8-10 volunteers who support and design the Safer Space in Greece for a period of five to twelve weeks. Their qualifications and competences are as versatile as the interests and needs of the residents in the refugee accommodation.
The crew is an integral part of our decision-making structure and therefore more than the executive power. Therefore, intensive preparation and follow-up of the crew members is also important to us. During the time in Greece, the crew is supervised by Hemayat e.V. In Greece, the crew lives together in our crewhouse, where they plan, prepare and evaluate the work at the camp.
The Pillars of Rolling Safespace
Medical advice in Medi-Space
Individual consultation in our mobile medical consultation room can be consulted with a doctor and/or midwife if necessary. In the case of diagnoses of diseases that exceed the capacities and possibilities of the Rolling Safespace, women are placed in specialized medical facilities. Group workshops on topics such as breast cancer prevention, (children’s) dental hygiene, pelvic floor health or contraception can also take place in the Saferspace under the guidance of the media team.
Empowerment in workshop space
A low-threshold workshop offer offers the opportunity for variety, networking and exchange. The workshop offer is designed and planned together with the participants. There are regular self-defense courses, creative workshops, sewing cafés or spontaneous parties.
The exchange and self-empowerment by discovering the participants’ own competences are in the foreground here.
Distribution of menstrual and hygiene products
Accessibility to sanitary facilities and hygiene items is both a prerequisite for the well-being and health of women on the move and a fundamental step towards gender equality.
Self-determination about pregnancies and the support of pregnant, breastfeeding, childcare women are necessary in a society that wants to treat all genders equally.
The issue of necessary utensils such as menstrual articles, diapers and contraceptives such as condoms, diaphragms, etc. is therefore an integral part of the Rolling Safespace.
Child Care in Kids-Space
Childcare is an elementary and necessary part of the Safer Space to give women the opportunity to participate in the workshops.
News from Greece
Many of our former crewies will continue to be part of ROSA – as an association member, in local groups or in other working groups – and thus ensure that ROSA can continue to grow.
Want to be part of the crew? Send us an email crewing@rolling-safespace.org. We are delighted!
ROSA Consultations: Queer Café
With our project ROSA Consultations, we are creating a low-threshold meeting and counselling offer for queer people and women in asylum procedures or with migration experience – both from the initial reception centre in Halberstadt and from other places.
The objective of ROSA Consultations It is to give vulnerable (especially vulnerable) people a space where they can talk about their everyday problems, challenges, needs and desires in the safest possible environment.
We know that these challenges are complex and depend heavily on the situation and the personal biography. Therefore, it is particularly important to us to respect personal boundaries and to support them as desired.
Our team & Local offers
Find our QueerCafé every second Thursday of the month in the Zora in Halberstadt instead. On site, our team of two permanent social workers and a language broker is there for you. At every QueerCafé there is a creative offer or workshop as well as space for exchange, discussion and individual advice.
If assistance is needed for asylum or residency issues, we can also call in a lawyer who will support our team on a fee basis.
And of course, the QueerCafé is not just about advice: there are snacks, creative offers, nice people and time to arrive, get to know and be together.
Come by – we look forward to seeing you!
Support
This important offer is made possible jointly! The project shall: half of the UN refugee aid and half of the German Postcode Lottery promoted.
