Exhibition theme: A Semblance of Normalcy: Border guards at Checkpoint Charlie [2/19]
OBJECT INFORMATION
Info
October 7 1989
Berlin, Friedrichstraße border crossing (Checkpoint Charlie)
Created By:
Jürgen LottenburgerLicense:
From the Set
Border guards on the 40th anniversary of the founding of the GDR on the East side of the Friedrichstraße border crossing (Checkpoint Charlie), one of seven street crossings between East and West Berlin (between the Soviet and US American sectors) while the Wall was up. Checkpoint Charlie was designated for use by foreign nationals, affiliates of the Allied Forces and diplomats.
Depicts
border guard,
group of people,
man,
October 7, 1989,
signboard,
tollgate,
traffic signcelebration,
family,
leave,
October 7, 1989,
vocational educationPeople/Organizations
Ministry for State Security,
National People's ArmyPlaces
Checkpoint CharlieOther items in this set
Many people who experienced the final summer of SED rule in East Germany recall how fragile reality seemed at the time. The incongruity between the way normal citizens experienced reality and the way it was perceived by GDR leaders was all too apparent. People were increasingly articulating this discrepancy. Minor concessions, as in the case of travel, for instance, were intended to improve the mood within the population. Rising protest against living conditions continued to be nipped in the bud. That summer nobody could have imagined that the dream of freedom would soon be reality.
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