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Anna Strohsahl

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Anna Strohsahl, around 1905
Anna Strohsahl, around 1905
Anna Strohsahl 1950 with grandson Götz Strömsdörfer

Anna Emilie Strohsahl, born Franze (* 2 October 1885 in Seifhennersdorf; † 1 January 1953 in Cuxhaven) was a German politician (SPD) and the only female city councillor ("Ratsmann") in Cuxhaven City Parliament.

Life

Anna Franze was born 2 October 1885 in Seifhennersdorf in Upper Lusatia as a daughter of brick mason Ernst Wilhelm Franze und weaver Christiane Auguste Franze. Lacking a higher school education or professional training she started to work as a housemaid in Zittau, Bavaria and Hamburg. 1907 she came to Cuxhaven.[1] 3 July 1914 she married typographer John Eduard Strohsahl.[2] The daughters Ruth (1915), Erika (1917) and Sonja (1927, died shortly after birth) resulted from the marriage.[3]

Political beginnings

Anna Strohsahl's political commitment started after World War One. Her husband was an editor with the social democratic newspaper "Alter Liebe" for which she also wrote articles later. Together with other social democrats she founded the SPD Cuxhaven Women's Group on 23 April 1920, and became its president on 2 June 1921.[4]

Citizen Parliament and Council

Anna Strohsahl was elected into Cuxhaven Citizen Parliament on 2 March 1924. She and Olga Geerken (DDP) were the only women in Parliament.[5] Anna Strohsahl was elected into the school board, the board of further education and the welfare centre.[6] She got involved with school education of workers' children and the support for pensioners, unemployed and homeless. The same year, she became delegate in the District Welfare Union ("Bezirksfürsorgeverband"). 1925, she was elected into housing office.[7] [8] In spring 1927 she left Citizen Parliament but was elected again 23 October 1927 as the only woman.[9][10] She was elected into the District Welfare Union again.[11] Anna Strohsahl called for more political commitment of women. She wrote in an article: "Also female voters must get used to following their representative's activities in Parliament."[12] After the elections on 19 October 1930 she was the only woman in Citizen Parliament again. On 31 October 1930, she became the first and only female city councillor ("Ratsmann") in the history of Cuxhaven City Parliament.[13][14] There, she was elected into the youth welfare office.[15] When Council dismissed the school's cleaning women whose husbands had a sufficient income as "double earners" in 1931, Anna Strohsahl was the only councillor to vote against the lay off.[16][17] 3 September 1931, she left the Evangelical-Lutheran Church.[18]

Political work after 30 January 1933

After the Nazi seizure of power work became harder for the Social Democrats in Cuxhaven. The NSDAP put the elected mayor Werner Grube (DVP) on leave, claiming that the composition of Council and City Parliament did no longer fit "the people's will". Grube was now temporarily deputised by government building officer Schätzler (NSDAP).[19][20] On 9 May 1933 the SPD councillors were removed from all boards. Anna Strohsahl thereupon claimed that "it cannot be the sense of the Gleichschaltung to completely exclude the Left from cooperation, which is representing 4000 voters."[21] 19 May 1933 the Council decided to pay the 50 Reichsmark expense allowance only to councillors heading a board in future.[22] In a City Parliament session counsillor Morisse declared to no longer setting value on the Social Democrats' work: "You don't have anything else to do than to be ashamed and to keep silent."[23] After this, Anna Strohsahl and the complete SPD group left the City Parliament. Following the prohibition of SPD on 22 June 1933 her political work ended for the time being.[24] Also the personal situation of the Strohsahl family worsened, harassing controls by the National Socialists increased. The supervisory school authority retroactively changed the passed high school diploma of her daughter Ruth from "good" to "poor/fail" which made her flee to the UK.[25] With the prohibition of the "Alte Liebe" on 16 March 1933 John Strohsahl was unemployed.[26] Anna Strohsahl supported her family during the Second World War as a house maid and sewer.[10]

References

  1. ^ Stadt Cuxhaven, Der Oberstadtdirektor, Frauenbeauftragte (Hrsg.): Powerfrauen Frauenpower. Ratsfrauen in der Stadt Cuxhaven seit 1919. Cuxhaven 2000, S. 33.
  2. ^ Standesamt der Gemeinde Seifhennersdorf: Heiratsurkunde Nr. 24/1914, 29. Januar 1953.
  3. ^ Stadt Cuxhaven, Der Oberstadtdirektor, Frauenbeauftragte (Hrsg.): Powerfrauen Frauenpower. Ratsfrauen in der Stadt Cuxhaven seit 1919. Cuxhaven 2000, S. 33.
  4. ^ Stadt Cuxhaven, Der Oberstadtdirektor, Frauenbeauftragte (Hrsg.): Powerfrauen Frauenpower. Ratsfrauen in der Stadt Cuxhaven seit 1919. Cuxhaven 2000, S. 34.
  5. ^ Stadt Cuxhaven, Der Oberstadtdirektor, Frauenbeauftragte (Hrsg.): Powerfrauen Frauenpower. Ratsfrauen in der Stadt Cuxhaven seit 1919. Cuxhaven 2000, S. 11.
  6. ^ Protokoll "Öffentliche Sitzung der Stadtvertretung am Montag, den 10. März 1924, abends 6 Uhr im Rathaus, Sitzungssaal", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 3-4.
  7. ^ Protokoll "Öffentliche Sitzung der Stadtvertretung am Donnerstag, den 18. September 1924, abends 8 Uhr im Rathaus, Sitzungssaal", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 6.
  8. ^ Protokoll "Öffentliche Sitzung der Stadtvertretung am 10. Oktober 1925, abends 6 Uhr im Rathaus, Sitzungssaal", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 5.
  9. ^ Protokoll "Öffentliche Sitzung der Stadtvertretung am Freitag, dem 4. März 1927, abends 8 Uhr im Rathaus, Sitzungssaal", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 5.
  10. ^ a b Stadt Cuxhaven, Der Oberstadtdirektor, Frauenbeauftragte (Hrsg.): Powerfrauen Frauenpower. Ratsfrauen in der Stadt Cuxhaven seit 1919. Cuxhaven 2000, S. 37.
  11. ^ Protokoll "Öffentliche Sitzung der Stadtvertretung am Freitag, dem 4. November 1927, abends 8 Uhr im Rathaus, Sitzungssaal", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 3.
  12. ^ Anna Strohsahl (1929-12-01), "Frau und Presse" (in German), Alte Liebe. Jubiläums-Ausgabe zum 70-jährigen Bestehen (Cuxhaven) 
  13. ^ Protokoll "Öffentliche Sitzung der Stadtvertretung am Freitag, dem 31. Oktober 1930, 20 Uhr, im Rathaus, Sitzungssaal", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 7.
  14. ^ Stadt Cuxhaven, Der Oberstadtdirektor, Frauenbeauftragte (Hrsg.): Powerfrauen Frauenpower. Ratsfrauen in der Stadt Cuxhaven seit 1919. Cuxhaven 2000, S. 11.
  15. ^ Protokoll "Ratssitzung am Montag, den 3. November 1930, 10 Uhr, im Rathaus, Zimmer 7", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 4.
  16. ^ Protokoll "Ratssitzung am Montag, den 27. Juli 1931, 15 1/2 Uhr, im Rathaus, Zimmer 7", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 5.
  17. ^ Protokoll "Ratssitzung am Donnerstag, dem 15. Oktober 1931, 15 1/2 Uhr, im Rathaus, Zimmer 10", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 3.
  18. ^ "Hamburgisches Standesamt Nr. 18: Kirchenaustrittsbescheinigung Anna Strohsahl", 3. September 1931.
  19. ^ Protokoll "Ratssitzung am Freitag, dem 10. März 1933, 16 Uhr, im Rathaus, Zimmer 22", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven
  20. ^ Protokoll "Ratssitzung am Montag, dem 20. März 1933, 16 Uhr, im Rathaus, Zimmer 22", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven
  21. ^ Protokoll "Ratssitzung am Dienstag, dem 9. Mai 1933, 16 Uhr, im Rathaus, Zimmer 22", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 2.
  22. ^ Protokoll "Ratssitzung am Freitag, dem 19. Mai 1933, 17 Uhr, im Rathaus, Zimmer 22", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 3.
  23. ^ Protokoll "Öffentliche Sitzung der Stadtvertretung am Freitag, dem 26. Mai 1933, 20 Uhr, im Rathaus, Sitzungssaal", Stadtarchiv Cuxhaven, S. 2.
  24. ^ "22.06.1933: Faktisches Verbot der SPD". Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  25. ^ Ruth Arndt (1983), Gymnasium Abendrothstraße Cuxhaven (ed.), "A Teenager in Nazi Germany", Mitteilungen 1983, Cuxhaven, pp. 109–112
  26. ^ "Engagiert im Sozialen. Anna Strohsahl (1885-1953), Ratsfrau der "ersten Stunde".", Cuxhavener Nachrichten, Cuxhaven: Cuxhaven-Niederelbe Verlagsgesellschaft, p. 8, 1999-07-03
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