Berlin Wall Authoritarianism

On the night of August 13 th , 1961, police officers strung barbed wire across the border of

My poster, entitled “OPEN THE DOOR TO FREEDOM,” is anti Berlin wall. My poster depicts the wall that stood between Communist East Berlin and capitalist West Berlin. The door shows the view from East Berlin and the struggle that lies outside of it to reach the freedom offered in West Berlin. If one even dared make the attempt to leave Communist East Berlin, one would have to endure the torturous and terrifying path through revealing sand, across hidden stakes and over barbed wire all while being the potential target of a sniper. The nails flying through the air from the open door hinges represent the strong emotions the residents of East Berlin felt towards the wall, and how they wished they were strong enough to rip the door off the hinges

At the beginning of the Cold War, the communist government in East Germany (GDR) and the Soviet Union agreed that a wall, restricting the people’s free access to the west (Allies), was the only way to solve the mass exodus that threatened the East German economy and made the Soviet Union look inferior to their rival the United States. The Berlin Wall, which enclosed West Berlin, was constructed, and the East Berliners were trapped behind a desperate and failing Iron Curtain until a revolution finally led to their freedom.

The Berlin wall was a wall that was up to 15 feet high, which separated East and West Berlin during the Cold War. It lasted 28 years from 1961 and 1989. Throughout this time period, many people living in East Germany left and fled to West Germany because they had a better economic system. Since their lost in WWII, East Germany built the wall to prevent access to West Berlin. Because of this separation that lasted 28 years, many families, friends and relatives were separated. The wall slowly progressed to become even more advanced so that it would be harder for people to get to the other side. About 5,000 people survived, 5,000 people got caught and 191 more were killed. People were willing to do anything at any means just to get over the wall

“Escape hatch”no more. The Berlin wall consisted of barbed wire and concrete, it was built to prevent East Germans from fleeing for their democratic freedom. Once the communist government realized that their people were fleeing the country they were outraged. According to History.com, the Communist government of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) constructed the wall on August 13, 1961. Now because of this there is no more departing. Everyone on the East side of Germany could no longer flee without their life being seized. They were stranded. There was no more escaping the Communist Government and they . It was a wall of shame or as they say Wand der Schande.

The Berlin Wall was a barrier that completely separated East and West Berlin during the time of the Cold War. It was constructed August 13th, 1961 and fell November 9th, 1989 from demolition. After WWII Germany was divided between the Soviets (East Germany) and the Allies (West Germany) to separate the two ideologies of communism and capitalism. The wall restricted movement from East to West Berlin, so citizens under communist rule could not escape to capitalism. People in East Berlin wanted to escape from communism because there were under strict control and weren't allowed to own anything from land to businesses. The Berlin wall was a symbol of the Cold War that was built as tensions increased between the Soviet Union and the US at the end

Approximately thirty (30) years ago, the Berlin Wall stood and still stands as a concrete manifestation of the Iron Curtain. It was built to prevent citizens within the communist East Germany from fleeing to democratic, capitalist West Berlin (Klein, Christopher, 2014). Within the United States and Mexico is a border fence which is a symbol of freedom and desirability of the United States (Kengor, Paul, 2016).

After the World War 2 East Germany was destroyed the Berlin wall was put up almost overnight. The Germans did not procrastinate, and was the Berlin Wall put up without warning. Orderly overtime the wall was reinforced with mine fields, dog runs, and even machine gun trip wires. Families were shattered and homes were destroyed as The Wall snaked across the borders of East Berlin. For years people thought that The Wall would never fall, and East Germany would be trapped inside forever, but after hundreds of riot and plans to escape, the borders opened and people flooded out of East Berlin. The excitement and the amazement of the dream for their freedom coming true were possible Because of the Fall of the Wall.

November 9, 1989, the wall finally came down and the party started. This was a critical time for East and West Berlin. The Berlin Wall was finally removed, making this date known for eternity! A new beginning formed for the people that were bound by the evils of communism.

After the conclusion of World War II, Germany was split into four sections, each occupied by the respective nations of France, Britain, America, and the Soviet Union. The Western nations of France, Britain, and the United States joined together and formed West Germany, while the communist U.S.S.R. maintained its own grip on East Germany.

In 1977, East Germany was horribly confining. The city was communist and had the Berlin Wall surrounding the entire city, isolating and trapping its residents. Little to no people could get in or out. Two families: the Strezyks and Wetzels, thought they could escape in a hot air balloon. It took them two years to build, because they had to work in secret, but it payed off. In 1979 they lifted off and flew over the massive Berlin Wall, by 8,200 feet, into West Germany, which was safe. It was kind of like Daedalus and Icarus and their great escape, but no one died.

The Berlin Wall was the division between West Berlin and East Germany from 1961 to 1989 and the symbolic boundary between democracy and Communism during the Cold War. The Berlin wall restricted East Germans from fleeing to the West for 28 years. At the end of World War II, the Allied powers divided and conquered Germany into four zones, each occupied by either the United States, Great Britain, France, or the Soviet Union. As the relationship between the Soviet Union and the other three Allied powers quickly shattered, the cooperative mood of the occupation of Germany turned very competitive and aggressive (Buckley Jr, 78). West Berlin became an island of democracy within Communist East Germany.

Germany has 16 states and three of them are called City-States. Their country capital is Berlin, Germany. Berlin was divided into four zones, America, British, Soviet, and French. The British and American Zones were combined in 1946 when it was first established, calling it the Bizone. In 1948, the French joined the Bizone causing it to be called the Trizone. In 1961, the Soviet’s built a wall all the way around West Germany to keep them from going to the land controlled by the USSR. The Berlin wall was demolished in 1989, and you can still see where the wall stood.

Did you know that the Berlin Wall was a big deal world wide? The Berlin Wall came up during the Cold War and the Cold War ended shortly after the Berlin Wall fell. The Berlin Wall separated East and West Berlin. Many people died trying to cross the Berlin Wall to see family or friends. In 1987 Ronald Reagan (United States president from 1981 to 1989 ) demanded Mr.Gorbachev (general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union) to tear down the Berlin Wall to unite the Berlin people.

Europe’s distinguishable – but perhaps not always positive – history has been shaped most monumentally by two events. In 1945, the end of WWII, breakup of the fascist German state, and subsequent plunge into the Cold War makes the year undoubtedly immensely significant. However, I would argue that the other provided date, 1989, holds even greater clout in terms of change upon the European continent, as well as the world. The falls of Communism and the Berlin Wall as well as the thawing of Eastern Europe marked the year 1989. However, it is important to state that I am in no way diminishing the importance of 1945, simply comparing and contrasting with 1989 to show vital differences. I understand a “turning point” as drastic change that