"Feminism in Germany has been lagging behind for the last 40 or 50 years," she added. "It has not advanced as far, and #MeToo is in many ways an expression of power." Germany also has been relatively slow to modernize its laws against rape. It took until 1997 for Parliament to recognize rape in marriage as a crime. Polls have found that 40% of women in Germany report having experienced sexual or physical abuse.

Antonia Niecke, chairperson of the Christian Democrats' youth wing in Hamburg, argues that safety zones for women assume that sexual assault is a given and, knowing that, questions how women can really be expected to enjoy New Year's celebrations. Criticism has also come from the German police, despite the fact that the safety zone has been set up by the capital's own police force. Rainer Wendt, head of Germany's police union, told a regional paper on Saturday that the apparent need for safety zones implies that public space is unsafe, indicating "the end of equality, freedom of movement and freedom of choice." Wendt says women should feel safe everywhere.

All major American social phenomena, positive and negative, also spread to Germany, albeit in delayed or attenuated form. It started after World War II, with blue jeans, chewing gum, and rock’n roll (which Elvis personally brought over). It continued with divorce, drugs, and reality television. And feminism. But feminism, in particular, proves that trends attenuate by the time they reach Germany, for German women have never embraced feminism as easily as their Anglo-Saxon sisters.

German media is avidly reporting on #MeToo, but it seems the further away the problem is, the better. Hollywood, Washington, London. But Berlin? Where are all the investigative scribes who normally leave no stone unturned in the government district? The silence drones on.

For Steinhaus, the daughter of an amateur referee who took her first officiating course at age 15, promotion to the Bundesliga was the realization of a lifelong dream. But it was in the flood of messages she received before, during and after the game that she began to grasp the remarkable extent to which others were invested in her achievement. “You’re breaking the glass ceiling for all of us,” a fellow female referee texted her.

Yet while the issue has gained a newfound media prominence, it is an all too familiar topic for those who have experienced it. In researching this article, two things quickly became clear. Many women — and some men, as it turns out — have experienced sexual harassment in a professional context, yet relatively few are willing to talk about it openly, let alone take legal action.

The number of women in parliament had risen continually since 1972, when only 6 percent of lawmakers in the Bundestag were women. In the last parliament 36 percent of MPs were female, but that streak has now been broken. Currently 30.7 percent of MPs are women; the last time there were so few females in the Bundestag was in 1998.

Chebli, a former spokeswoman for the German foreign ministry born to Palestinian refugee parents, was swamped with insults on her Facebook page, including suggestions that she wear a Muslim headscarf if she does not want to receive compliments. She also received messages of support, including from women who had similar experiences, including Teresa Buecker, editor-in-chief of the feminist magazine Edition F.

Vera Jourova, the EU commissioner responsible for gender equality, cautioned against celebrating any slight improvements. She stressed that almost half of EU member states scored worse in at least one area compared to previous years. "We cannot think of our societies as modern when we let so many people down," she said. "The new results of the Gender Equality Index show that across all areas of life inequality prevails. This means Europe has a duty to act."

In Germany, the underrepresentation of women in parliament is just a high-profile snapshot of the country's cultural and societal mindset on issues of gender equality and stereotyped gender roles. "The position of women in Germany seems to be not as naturally equal as in other countries," Barley said.

The male-female distinction dates back to the Cold War. West Germany prided itself on a patriarchal social structure, she said, while socialism in East Germany required both men and women to work.

“It all sounds dull, but she likes that — dullness is her middle name. But it’s ambitious all the same, even if she moves step by step, as ever with her. But that suits Europe — you can’t revolutionize Europe. She sits and waits and lets everyone speak, and then she finds a compromise. That is her strength.”