Dokumentationszentrum und Museum über die Migration in Deutschland e.V. (DOMiD)

In Cologne, DOMiD (Dokumentationszentrum und Museum über die Migration in Deutschland) collects, preserves and presents materials on the history of migration and operates a museum, archive and research services. The association organises guided tours, lectures, conferences and educational workshops and regards migration as a normal part of society. Its aim is a comprehensive representation of a migration society; the Museum Selma is being developed for this purpose, currently scheduled to open in 2029.

The association was founded in 1990 in the Ruhr region; initially its focus was on the history of the so‑called guest worker programmes, with particular attention to migration from Turkey. A 2007 merger with a like‑minded association broadened perspectives on countries of origin and led to the renaming as DOMiD. Since 2010 the office has been located in the Bezirksrathaus Köln‑Ehrenfeld; the collection is available to researchers by appointment and is regularly used by students, cultural practitioners and historians.

The collection begins in 1945 and extends to the present. It documents migration to West and East Germany, including the GDR, and comprises over 150,000 items and media: monographs, grey literature, newspapers, original documents, photographs, films, audio recordings, flyers, posters and three‑dimensional everyday and work objects. A scientific advisory board supports the association’s work.

The holdings include personal and institutional records: letters, identity documents, employment contracts, diaries, dormitory regulations and association materials, as well as private and professional photographs that provide insights into housing, culture, work and political participation. Objects range from small keepsakes to a Ford Transit. The audiovisual archive contains documentary and feature films, event recordings, radio broadcasts, music and, since the mid‑1990s, numerous oral‑history interviews. Musical traditions and genres that developed in Germany are well represented.

Well‑known estates complement the holdings, including the papers of prominent individuals as well as the so‑called “Möllner Briefe” following the 1992 arson attacks. A documentary film about these letters premiered at the Berlinale in 2025 and received several awards.

The planned Museum Selma, developed in cooperation with civil society, is intended to provide exhibition spaces, workshops, event rooms, a cinema and archive and library facilities. The permanent exhibition will combine a chronological account of German history with migration‑specific perspectives and six concept rooms. A non‑profit company was established for construction and operation; the federal government, the state of North Rhine‑Westphalia and the city of Cologne are providing financial support for the project. Because of substantial increases in construction costs, DOMiD announced in March 2026 that the site might be moved from the originally planned industrial area in Kalk to an inner‑city neighbourhood. At the end of March 2026 a citizens’ initiative formed calling for the museum to remain at its original site.