What set World War II apart as one of the worst wars in the history of mankind was that society was forced to grapple with the question of how modern, civilized societies were able to commit such heinous acts. Events such as the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Holocaust, and the sheer number of civilians that died seemed to defy any explanation. In the aftermath of World War II came another more subtle atrocity that was not grounded in warfare, but was a gross human rights violation nonetheless: the building of the Berlin Wall.
After World War II, the Potsdam Agreement divided Germany into four parts, each controlled by one of the Allied Powers, with the intent of finding a degree of restitution for Hitler’s war crimes and restoring the country. One of these sections, which included East Berlin, went to the Soviet Union. Although the ideology of the USSR was vastly different from the other Allied Powers, they were a key force in the Allied front.
I Am A Berliner
Under the rule of Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union, East Berlin was rapidly communized. School children were taught communist principles in their curriculum, and individual property was no longer recognized. Despising the direction that their society was headed, and under multiple pressures, many East Berliners fled as refugees.
In 1961 the Soviet Union began construction of a wall that would separate East and West Berlin, and therefore prevent any defectors from leaving. Many civilians were separated from their families for decades, until the Berlin Wall fell in 1989. If you are unfamiliar with the Berlin Wall, I would highly recommend you do some research on it. The fall of the Berlin Wall was one of the pivotal landmarks of the 20th century.
The tragedy is that history repeats itself. There is another wall, not in Germany, but in another land that also became divided in the aftermath of World War II: Palestine. Following the Holocaust, in 1948 the United Nations partitioned the Arab nation of Palestine, setting aside a sizeable portion of the land for the new state of Israel. What followed was nothing short of a genocide of the indigenous Palestinian population, something that I will discuss in later articles. Today, Palestine is not even recognized as a country by the United Nations. The world has purposely forgotten about the Palestinian people, and they are living under some of the worst human rights violations in the world today.
Ten years after the Berlin Wall fell, in 2000, Israel began construction of a barrier surrounding the West Bank portion of Palestine that separates it from the rest of Israel. Palestinians are unable to leave without a passport and visa, even for urgent medical care. Bethlehem is entirely surrounded; it is impossible for Palestinians to get in or out. They must live their entire lives within this one small city. The United Nations and International Court of Justice have passed measures requesting that the wall be removed; however, Israel has continued to build it. Parts of the wall pass through historic farmland and have thereby destroyed ancient groves. Many farmers have lost their land and their livelihood. Many people have lost their lives.
Most of the world knows of the Berlin Wall, but has never heard of the West Bank Barrier. I encourage you to learn more about it and the effects that it has had on the Palestinian people. If you live in a country where you can write to your local politicians, I urge you to write to your politicians urging them to vote on legislation that will remove the West Bank Barrier.
Desmond Tutu, the South African archbishop who fought against apartheid, said, “All oppression must fail.” Those of us who are on the side of justice will see victory, and it is not too late for the oppressors to join our side. One day this wall will fall, and when it does, I will be there to see it.
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