History of Sorts

On June 12, 1987, U.S. President Ronald Reagan gave a speech at the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin, calling for the leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to open the Berlin Wall. He famously said, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” This moment is considered a significant event in the Cold War era, symbolizing a call for the end of the division between East and West Berlin and, more broadly, the division between the communist and capitalist blocs.

“Behind me stands a wall that encircles the free sectors of this city, part of a vast system of barriers that divides the entire continent of Europe. . . . Standing before the Brandenburg Gate, every man is a German, separated from his fellow men. Every man is a Berliner, forced to look upon a scar. . . . As long as this gate is closed, as long as this scar of a wall is permitted to stand, it is not the German question alone that remains open, but the question of freedom for all mankind. . . .

General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate.

Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate!

Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

On November 9, 1989, the Cold War officially began to thaw when Egon Krenz, the head of East Germany’s Communist Party, announced that citizens could now cross into West Germany freely. That night, thousands of East and West Germans headed to the Berlin Wall to celebrate, many armed with hammers, chisels, and other tools. Over the next few weeks, the wall would be nearly completely dismantled. After talks over the next year, East and West Germany officially reunited on October 3, 1990.

Sources

https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2007/summer/berlin.html

https://www.history.com/news/ronald-reagan-tear-down-this-wall-speech-berlin-gorbachev

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