While i was watching the news yesterday it hit me that two mayor milestones in German history happened on the same day. The "Reichskristallnacht" or the Night of Broken Glass happened November 9Th-10Th in the year 1938. At that night over 200 synagogues burned and Jewish businesses and homes where destroyed. In this single night 30.000 Jews where arrested and deported to concentration camps. From this night on Jewish people had to wear the star on there clothes. This was by far the darkest night in Germany's long history. And even its been 70 years since then, people in this country know the details and they live on with that thoughts and just know how horrible this part of German history is.
On the exact day just 19 years ago, Germany had the happy day where the wall in Berlin fell. People danced on the wall, they hugged each other after being separated since 1961.
When the East German government announced on November 9, 1989, after several weeks of civil unrest, that all GDR citizens could visit West Germany and West Berlin, crowds of East Germans climbed onto and crossed the wall, joined by West Germans on the other side in a celebratory atmosphere. Over the next few weeks, parts of the wall were chipped away by a euphoric public and by souvenir hunters. The fall of the Berlin Wall paved the way for German reunification, which was formally concluded on October 3, 1990.
When the East German government announced on November 9, 1989, after several weeks of civil unrest, that all GDR citizens could visit West Germany and West Berlin, crowds of East Germans climbed onto and crossed the wall, joined by West Germans on the other side in a celebratory atmosphere. Over the next few weeks, parts of the wall were chipped away by a euphoric public and by souvenir hunters. The fall of the Berlin Wall paved the way for German reunification, which was formally concluded on October 3, 1990.
1 comment:
I remember clearly when the Berlin Wall came down. I was friends with a German exchange student in my high school and he was so sad to be in the US during such an important time in history!
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