The walled mind

[ddstory.livejournal.com]

^ This is Berlin, exactly 23 years ago. The day Germany was re-united. For 28 years the East Germans had lived literally surrounded by walls in the former post-WW2 Soviet occupation zone. Escape from DDR was almost impossible. And socialism reigned supreme behind that wall. But at the end of the 80s, the political experiment finally crumbled down.

In '89 the authorities on both sides of the divide opened up the borders. It was a time of great exodus: many East Germans moved west. Some, to have a taste of freedom. Others, to see what it's like to travel without restrictions across an increasingly integrated Europe. And still others, just to buy some stuff that had never been available around the DDR stores. The first consequence of the change was the gradual transformation of the East German wardrobe. The rather dull and easily recognizable clothes (grey shoes, raincoats, etc) started to disappear. The hair style changed too - now people from both sides of the former border were virtually indistinguishable. But what turned out harder to change was what was in their minds. Deep down, many of the old divisions remained for much longer. And the prejudices, too.

According to researches the major prejudice of many East Germans (or "Ossies", as they're called) is that they perceive the "Wessies" as arrogant, superficial, too pedantic, and very materialistic. Granted, the East Germans seem to be still much more prejudiced towards their Western fellow countrymen than the reversed. If you look deeper beneath the surface, you'd begin to realize that the Germans from the eastern and western provinces are hardly viewing themselves as one people yet.

Many East Germans, particularly those of the older generations, are still seeing themselves as being treated as second class citizens. They believe the conditions and the living standard in the eastern provinces are essentially discriminatory. Granted, much of the residential, industrial and transportation infrastructure has been modernized in the recent couple of decades, but the incomes of the people there are still roughly 4/5 of those in the West, and the pensions are much lower as well.

This may have a lot to do with the fact that the eastern part of Germany hosts mostly medium to small businesses, while the headqarters of the big companies (and the big job positions, respectively) remain concentrated in the West. Even the billions of euros of subsidies for leveling the standards between the two parts have not been able to erase this discrepancy. Which is what fuels the disillusion in the East.

Meanwhile, the West Germans also harbor a number of general prejudices towards their Eastern brethren. Many consider them restless, distrustful, even cowardly. And they wish that the "solidarity" tax that's meant to close the gap between the western and eastern provinces could go away as soon as possible - while forgetting that this tax applies to the Ossies as well. Even this fact by itself speaks volumes about the process of unification in the minds of the Germans, which has hardly been completed.

There are too few personal connections and friendships between Wessies and Ossies. Much less than some might've hoped for, anyway. The good news, though, is that the picture looks a bit more optimistic as far as the younger generations are concerned. It's natural that they'd find much more to unite them than divide them than their parents once did. But when exactly the differences will disappear altogether - that's hard to predict. And yet, today is indeed a day of celebration and jubilation all across Germany, no matter East or West.

Comments

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

I know a woman from (west) Germany living near me in California. She is very cool, grows food, nice to animals. I like her and her hubby.
She talked about how the influx of east Germans negatively affected her small town. Then she apologized profusely for being one sided. Interesting exchange. Her guilt over and sympathy for the plight of the east Germans was palatable.

[htpcl.livejournal.com]

Dunno, to us Balkanites, DDR looked pretty "Western" at the time.

[papasha-mueller.livejournal.com]

The Germans seems to be pretty much voting different ways, too.
East vs. West:
http://www.tagesspiegel.de/images/berliner-wahlkreise-print/8831046/2-format15.jpg

[brother-dour.livejournal.com]

Thanks, ddstory, for making me feel old. I was a senior in high school when that happened.

I still believe this is the singular most remarkable event in my lifetime- moreson than any war fought in my lifetime so far, moreso than 9/11, moreso than any scientific breakthrough I can think of. Maybe others saw it coming, but I think the average American was totally blindsided (probably the average Soviet citizen, too). It took months for this to sink in: our old enemy just suddenly decided playing Cold War wasn't fun anymore. And the U.S. was so used to them playing Cold War with them, that we didn't know what to play next. I don't think the U.S. and her various NATO allies have yet figured that out.

[mahnmut.livejournal.com]

Hands off, Mandela's release was #1.

[brother-dour.livejournal.com]

Interesting. Why do you say that?

[mahnmut.livejournal.com]

Because from my standpoint that was the most world-changing event. Of my world.

We're talking of our personal lifetimes/experiences, no?

[brother-dour.livejournal.com]

Kind of, yes. The fall of the Iron Curtain was personally quite remarkable to me. But I was thinking more in terms of global impact, though.

[sandwichwarrior.livejournal.com]

^ This

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

Thanks brother_dour for making me feel older than old!

[fizzyland.livejournal.com]

I visited the East German border in the 80's. The cleared fields, rows of wire, sentry towers, it was ominous as hell. Trains that ran to Berlin all had boarded-over windows I guess to prevent spying.

[telemann.livejournal.com]

Nick Rivers performed there once. :P

[rimpala.livejournal.com]

Why anyone thinks dividing a country up between two governmental systems is ever a good idea is beyond me.

[telemann.livejournal.com]

Austria was divided into Allied occupation zones after WW2 too, but they were reunified a lot more quickly.

[rimpala.livejournal.com]

ah yes, I remember that from The Third Man

[ddstory.livejournal.com]

It's the ages-old colonial concept of spheres of dominance influence.

[evildevil.livejournal.com]

I get the feeling something similar could happen with Korea. There is already prejudice against N. Korean escapees in the South (the usual stuff. that they are ugly, backwards, too small, thieves, not trustworthy, resentment about how the government gives them special treatment, etc.)

[malasadas.livejournal.com]

I was a junior in college when the wall fell before formal reunification. I was a T.A. for an education course and I was in the T.A. lounge with the others working out grading standards for an assignment when someone came in a said that the Berlin Wall was being torn down. We all went outside and, I kid you not, there was a rainbow in the sky -- a very rare sight in northern New Hampshire in the Fall. I have never been exceptionally spiritual, but I couldn't help but see that as a very poignant sign. One I fear we very fallible people have done poorly with.