Word: germanize
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1980-1989
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...student from West Germany, I was deeply offended by Neil Cooper's editorial, "The Case Against Reunification" (Crimson, Nov. 22). While it lacks any understanding of the present situation in the Germanies, it creates the stereotypical image of the war-mongering and evil German...
...Cooper fears an "intensely nationalistic Germany." Having lived in Germany for 19 years, and in the U.S. for four, I can safely say that German nationalism, compared to American nationalism, is miniscule, if not non-existent. In contrast to the America of 1989, we do not spend our time discussing flag-burning or standing up in high school to pledge allegiance to a piece of cloth. While the burning of foreign flags is illegal, every German can--and people do--burn as many German flags as he or she may wish...
...recent events were clearly not an outpouring of nationalism, but a celebration of freedom. The destruction of the wall was not seen as the sign of regaining German strength (after all, it is Mikhail Gorbachev, not Germany, who was largely responsible for the dramatic changes), but the reunion with relatives, old and new friends was celebrated. Contrast this, for example, to the Anschluss of Austria or the annexation of the Sudetenland in 1938, where people cheered at parading tanks and soldiers. I think the difference could hardly be more striking...
Moreover, where should the Germans of 1989 get these racist, anti-Semitic, and nationalistic feelings in the first place? After World War II, those who supported Hitler kept their mouths shut, for obvious reasons, and were hardly able to pass on their horrific heritage. In school, at home, and in the media, we grew up with images of the Holocaust, German war crimes, and the destructive power of ideology and nationalism. We spent years of painful confrontations with the older generation about their involvement in the Third Reich. Does Cooper think that that was all worth nothing...
WORLD: An irresistible tide is sweeping the East bloc as reformers in Bulgaria and Czechoslovakia follow the East German lead in pressing for democracy...