On the 9th of November, 25 years ago, the infamous Berlin Wall that separated the Communist East and Capitalist West came down, leading to the reunification of Germany. In this period of 28 years there was brutal deaths, dramatic escapes and families split up, therefore the end of the wall was a momentous occasion celebrated throughout Germany. Berlin has come a long way since 25 years ago with an East German, Angela Merkel, currently running the country. However even today there is still evidence of division within Berlin.
The Canadian astronaut, Chris Hadfield, sent down from space an image of Berlin a year ago. This picture indicated a division within the city, the West glowed a whitish colour whilst the East was more yellow and the dividing line looked suspiciously like that of the Wall. As well as physical differences there is an income gap between the two, with East Berliners being on average worse off than their Western counterparts, and also more likely to be unemployed.
Other differences are less obvious, some East Germans feel as though they are treated as inferior to their Western neighbours, who are dismissive of the culture of East Germany. The collective memory in reunified Germany is arguably more a West German one not an East German one causing resentment as many in East Germany viewed reunification as more of a takeover by the West not a merger. Former West Germans also exhibited resentment, begrudging the cost of reunification and the perceived complaining by the Easterners. This division in attitudes and behavior is known as ‘A Wall in the Head.’ These resentments between the two have led to Germany remaining divided in many ways, with lingering discontent on both sides.
However, whilst there may be physical, social and cultural differences between the two sides of Berlin, these arguably don’t matter as much anymore because Berlin has found its own unique urban narrative and with new younger generations that remember less of the Wall there is less of a contrast between the two sides. Berlin has a global appeal to many as being an exciting, unique city and part of its charm are the different characteristics exhibited by the city from its past.
This weekend, a symbolic frontier of lights, consisting of thousands of illuminated balloons to be lit throughout the weekend, will trace a 15km long area of the former course of the Wall and huge street parties are planned to mirror the celebrations of 25 years ago. In contrast to previous anniversaries this year the emphasis will be on celebrating a unified Germany and to try to once and for all put these divisions behind them.