Elisabeth Selbert (1896–1986) was a German politician and lawyer, one of the four women who worked on the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany in 1948, collectively called the Mütter des Grundgesetzes (English: Mothers of the Basic Law). She had a central role in ensuring that explicit equality between men and women was included as a fundamental right in the Basic Law.
The statue was unveiled on what would have been her 125th birthday in 2021 outside the Church of the Brethern which she attended It was then moved to its permanent location at Scheidemannplatz near Ständeplatz, not far from Selbert’s law firm. It was funded by the association “SI-Sisters – Soroptimist Kassel III – Elisabeth Selbert”. The sculptor is Karin Bohrmann.
Only four of the 65 members of the Parliamentary Council that began drawing up the German Basic Law in 1948 were women. Despite women having taken care of their families during WWII and helped get the country back on its feet, women had to settle back into a patriarchal society when the men returned. They were not allowed to open a bank account or to sign an employment contract, for example.
The women pushed for one historic sentence to be included in the Basic Law, which was proclaimed on 23 May 1949: “Men and women shall have equal rights.” Without Dr Elisabeth Selbert (SPD), Friederike Nadig (SPD), Helene Weber (CDU) and Helene Wessel (Centre Party), this crucial passage would not have been included. Elisabeth Selbert initiated that provision.
