The Historical Background
In 1961, the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) built the Berlin Wall, splitting the city in half, for 28 years. It was also a physical and intellectual barrier, a dividing iron curtain between Eastern and Western Europe during the Cold War. It was the wall which symbolized the power struggle between what vastly divided the two main superpowers of the world, the US and USSR, and capitalist-communism, freedom and oppression.
The End of an Era
On November 9 in 1989 the fall of the Berlin Wall opened a new page in the European History. There were many factors which led up to the historic event such as the people’s unflinching resolve, economic hardships and greater pression for political reform.
The Breakdown of an Ideological Barrier
The collapse of communism in Eastern Europe seemed to have been marked with the fall of the Berlin Wall. It was the iron curtain in Eastern European nations that had been under Soviet rule for so many years, that was torn down. What happened in the incident fired a wave of freedom and democratisation, as communism crumbled in countries like Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. The wall’s collapse was seen as a fulfillment of what all people want; freedom and democracy.
Freedom and Reunification
Fall of Berlin Wall unifies Germany. The wall was tangible symbol and kept families apart, and friends apart, and loved ones apart, and in this way, separated East and West Germany. Its annihilation gave a renewed spirit of freedom, unity. On 3 October 1990 East and West Germany were finally reunited, ending a rift that had existed for almost fifty years.
A Sign of Peace and Hope
Falling of the Berlin Wall signified peace and hope beyond bringing a divided nation back together. It showed it was possible to make even the most hopeless of progess even in the most difficult of times. Those demonstrations that preceded the collapse of the wall were nonviolent demonstrations that showed how nonviolent resistance can be very powerful and how the universal human yearning for equality and freedom.
Knowledge Acquired
The fall of the Berlin Wall had some valuable lessons for the world to learn. But it proved that people can want freedom and self determination as much as they need it, that the human spirit cannot be permanently repressed. The circumstances preceding the fall of the Berlin Wall serve as a reminder of the significant influence that one person may have on history by working with others.
A Lighthouse of Hope for Upcoming Generations
The fall of the Berlin Wall is always going to be an optimistic thing for centuries to come. With acute problems appears to be insurmountable, it reminds us that change, even change of a constructive nature, is possible. What is inspiring about is the fact of it sparking people up to take on oppressive structures, prosecute the status quo, and work for a just and inclusive society.
Winter’s fall of the Berlin Wall, by Unsplash.
To sum up
The example of the fall of the Berlin Wall affected far more than just Berlin itself. It spoke of the reunion of a ravaged nation, an era ending, a philosophy this had suppressed being torn down with a single dare. Freedom, hope and the power of group effort stood for it. The lessons learnt from this momentous day still encourage people all across the world to work for constructive change to a more inclusive and more cohesive society.
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