Raid in queer community place: All because of a few pills

On Sunday afternoon, police officers searched Casa Kuà on Naunynstrasse in Kreuzberg on suspicion of illegal trafficking in prescription drugs. Casa Kuà is a health center and community space for queer people that has been around since 2020.

At the time of the raid, the “Dolls” meeting was taking place there, a meeting explicitly for trans women. The “Dolls” want to be in a safe place, free from fear of (transmisogynistic) violence, with the opportunity to swap clothes, take part in workshops, or eat together. The “Dolls” are a refuge, especially for poor and non-white trans women.

Kim* was there for the first time on Sunday. She describes how she experienced the situation to the taz: “Suddenly police officers entered the building and the relaxed mood immediately turned into tension.” At that time there were 13 trans women in Casa Kuà.

The police forbade them to use their cell phones. Your hands had to be visible to officers at all times. Going to the toilet was also strictly controlled, Kim continued. The police had a search warrant for the center. The search was for two substances. According to Kim, those present were surprised because they did not know about them, as they are not used in classic hormone replacement therapy.

Hormone replacement therapy is a fundamental component for many trans people and has been recognized and practiced internationally for decades. It is one of the few ways to remedy gender dysphoria, i.e. the distress that a person feels when their perceived gender identity does not match the physical gender assigned at birth. Hormones such as estrogen or progesterone are used.

However, at the taz's request, the public prosecutor's office said that "suspected doping drugs" had been seized. She didn't say exactly what they were called. Estrogen and progesterone have the opposite effect as they do not increase testosterone levels.

In addition, the police seized four-digit amounts of cash. Money that, according to visitors, is used to pay for workshops or a laser machine for hair removal and has nothing to do with illegal hormone trafficking.

Kim describes how the police officers opened the door to a back room with bolt cutters. The personal details of everyone present were then recorded. According to the police report, data carriers were also confiscated.

During the raid, police told the women they were checking to see if anyone had committed a crime in the past. The operation caused horror in the community. It is “one of the worst attacks on trans rights in the recent history of this country,” said Thea Etcetera, a trans female artist, on Instagram.

Associations of those affected have been criticizing for decades that the treatment of trans people is not low enough and is degrading. Hurdles, especially for medical gender reassignment, remained even after the introduction of the Self-Determination Act in 2024. In addition, poor and non-white or refugee trans women in particular do not have health insurance in Germany or experience discrimination in the healthcare system.

Before the women were allowed to leave the building after hours, each one had to undergo a bag check. Kim says: "A woman had her estrogen tablets with her. The police immediately became suspicious and started harassing her." They really wanted to see a recipe. A prescription that remains at the pharmacy when you pick it up.

Around 140 people gathered in front of the building during the operation to show their solidarity. Their demand: an immediate end to the police measures. One participant reported that it was incomprehensible to everyone why the “Dolls” were the target of a raid. She sees the alleged possession and distribution of hormones as a pretext to take violent action against trans women. "In the end there were around ten police cars there. This is absolutely disproportionate. Neither the number of people present nor the amount of allegedly illegal hormone tablets justifies this threatening operation," said the eyewitness.

When the police announced an even larger contingent in response to the spontaneous gathering, supporters called for a spontaneous rally to Rio-Reiser-Platz. Among them is Stella*, who regularly takes part in “Dolls” meetings. “Eating or chatting with the Dolls means a lot to me!” said Stella to taz. For them it is clear: “This was a targeted attack on the trans community in Berlin.”