German 353 Skype session: Fall 2013
In fall 2013 Professor Bjornstad invited Pastor Thomas Meinhof and Almuth Heinze (wife of a fellow pastor) to speak with her FLGR 353 students via Skype (in their native language of German). They both live in Saxony, Germany, near Leipzig and Dresden. They shared their personal experiences as young students (20, 22) in Leipzig in October 1989, taking part in the Peace Demonstrations that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989 and the eventual reunification of East and West Germany in 1990.
After listening to the personal testimonials, Professor Bjornstad's students were invited to ask questions. A few questions included:
What ways did the protesters in 1989 have of organizing with each other?
What was the relationship between the church and the state during the East German regime?