today marks the 50th anniversary of the construction of the berlin wall. this wall, however, did not just separate berlin. it separated a whole country, split it into a “west” and an “east”.
and the fact that this wall did not even make it 30 years is a very vital proof that no country can lock up its citizens. eventually people will call upon their right to freedom of movement and freedom of speech.
i was born in the locked up east and hadn’t it been for the many brave citizens who brought about the change in ’89 i wouldn’t have been able to grow up the way i did. my mom was never allowed to travel outside of the eastern bloc. but even to travel outside of east germany was difficult. she went to school in the restricted area that was a stretch of land close to the border to west germany where access was restricted and only people with special passes were allowed to live. she was sent to this blocked off zone because of her physical handicap. schools for handicapped were typically built in those zones to basically keep the abnormal people separate from the rest of the population. just like crime and divorce was not talked about in the east so were physical handicaps that did not stem from the war and the fight against nazis. as you can imagine, the town was without much contact to the rest of the country because outsiders couldn’t get in so easily.
my mom remembers multiple occasions when their whole town was shut down and strip searched as a result of an attempt of someone (usually an out of towner) tried to cross the border.
who knows, maybe i would have had the same experiences if it hadn’t been for the people who stood up for their freedom in ’89 and who eventually brought down the wall.i remember not having much (as in possessions) but thankfully i don’t remember personal oppression as experienced by so many others.
no country can lock up their people and think that they will not stand up for their rights (eventually). not in germany, not in israel and not elsewhere.
the wall stood for 28 years and that was 28 years too many!
franzi
Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: | family, freedom, friends, history, life, misc, random
Amen sister!!
I’m glad you wrote this. I remember the wall coming down, but I’ve never read anyone’s personal accounts. Thank you.
you’re welcome! more family stories of that time? let me know ~ franzi