Radio feature - Living by society: The case of Reinhard Rutz

Reinhard is homeless. When he's not roaming around buying his next bottle of alcohol, he spends time with his friends. During the week, he lives in a sheltered housing facility run by the Diakonie. He doesn't know his family and is plagued by his past. Drugs, crime. Reinhard killed his girlfriend after she cheated on him and served 15 years in prison. This is his life, the housing assistance is all he has.

As part of my media studies at the University of Siegen, we were tasked creating a 15-minute radio feature on a topic of our choice in the winter semester of 2017/18. The only condition was that it had to be related to the city of Siegen.

As part of a group, we agreed to work with homeless people. After our first contact with the Diakonie, we were introduced to Reinhard. Together with a fellow student, I visited him in his single apartment and was surprised by his openness and warmth - and his past.

Authors: Angelina Rehwinkel, Julia Wonner, Marie Nicolay, Mattis May, Maurice Päffgen & Tim Krenz

Editing: Mattis May