Activities to Mark 20th Anniversary of Fall of Berlin Wall

Two weeks of events are planned to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. From November 5th through November 20th in the display cases in the Fine Arts Building will be the works of Prof. Bryan Gott’s graphic design students and the historical maps of Dr. Fiona Davidson’s geography students, along with artifacts from the former East Germany.

On Wednesday, November 4th, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. in 421 Old Main will be a discussion of “Inside Communism: Personal Recollections of Everyday Life behind the Iron Curtain” by Dr. Evan Bukey and Dr. Thomas Grischany. They will discuss their experiences living in the German Democratic Republic and the Soviet Union / Bulgaria, respectively, and share photos with the audience.

On Thursday, November 5th, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in JB Hunt 207 will be "Dinner and a Show: The East German Western Apachen (Apaches)." Bring your lunch and come see one of the many Westerns the East Germans made, in which the Indians are the good guys and the cowboys are the ruthless capitalists. Introduction by Dr. Kathleen Condray.

On Monday, November 9th, frrom 4 to 5 p.m. in Kimpel 105, Dr. Lisa Corrigan will discuss the rhetorical context surrounding the fall of the wall by looking at the public discourse of Ronald Reagan. This lecture will be followed by a question and answer session.

On Tuesday, November 10th, from 4 to 5 p.m. in Kimpel 210 will be “99 Red Balloons and the Youth of America” by Dr. Jennifer Hoyer. She will discuss how the only four West German pop songs to make it onto American charts were all about the conflict between East and West in the Cold War.

On Wednesday, November 11th, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. in Ozark 25 will be the symposium "The West's Political Reaction to the Fall of the Wall" featuring Alessandro Brogi, Benjamin Grob-Fitzgibbon, and Thomas Grischany. Each panelist will offer remarks for 15 to 20 minutes followed by questions and discussion. All events are free and open to the public!