STEP Reflection — Berlin Then and Now

The Program I was lucky enough to partake in was the Berlin Then and Now program. This GE history course was based out of Berlin, Germany, and studied all different aspects of history that have gone into making Berlin such a unique city. Between politics, changing socio-economic status, and general mannerisms and habits of native Germans, I truly felt that I learned enough in my month abroad to immerse myself as a true Berliner.

I am forever grateful for my time in Berlin because of the lasting impact it had on me. Before living abroad for a month, I had a very limited view of the world and how intertwined it is. Here in the United States our news is almost entirely involved in domestic affairs with little mention of international current events. In Europe, especially Germany, it is quite the opposite. Germans take it upon themselves to be up to date and knowledgeable with EVERYTHING that’s happening in the world, down to knowing even the basics of how every other nation’s governments work. I was asked multiple times on my party affiliation, what I thought of Donald Trump, and even talked about our electoral college system. The biggest impact this trip had on me was internally to make myself far more globally aware of politics and socio economic issues, just like that of the Germans I encountered.

There were multiple events that happened during my trip that helped me to realize my lack of global political knowledge, each of which impacted me in a slightly different way. The first and most constant activity that I partook in during my study abroad experience  was class itself. I personally believe the structure of this class laid the ground work for me becoming interested and invested in becoming more politically aware. Each of the 4 weeks we were in Berlin had a different historical theme to it (i.e. cold war, WWII, “new” berlin, etc) The More I learned in class the more I became interested and wanted to learn more outside of class. What I didn’t realize before this study abroad was that Germany has been on both the winning and losing side of history, and involved in every major world conflict in modern history. It has had both conservative and liberal leaders and has both been adored by its citizens and hated by its citizens. Back in the U.S. I had never gone this in depth into learning about another country and this I believe is what spurred my desire to gain a more wholistic world view.

Another event that shaped my desire to become more politically aware was my class’ visit to a concentration camp. The concentration camp we visit was Sachsenhausen which is about 45 minutes outside of Berlin. Obviously the ruling of the Nazi regime and the Holocaust are two of Germany’s darkest pieces of history, but they are also crucial parts of history that a person, in my opinion, must be knowledgeable about. This added to my desire to gain foreign political understanding because of what my tour guide told us. She told us that in order to not repeat the past, we need to wholeheartedly understand our mistakes and failures. The holocaust and Nazi regimes are two subjects that Germans do not take lightly, and in my opinion, the respect given in gaining a deep understanding of what caused these two events to occur, creates a desire in individuals to be politically aware. This political awareness is in part so that citizens can protect themselves and their fellow Germans/Europeans from another atrocious set of events.

Finally, one event in particular that shaped me was being pulled aside and being asked point blank about the American political system. I was out to dinner with one of the girls on my trip, and when the bartender / waiter noticed we were Americans, he asked us immediately what we thought of Trump. Germany, as I came to learn, is an extremely liberal country, and when polled only 7% of Germans would have even considered voting for Trump if given the chance. Given these statistics, I understood the waiters curiosity into what we as American’s thought and how we voted, but the conversation continued and became much deeper and involved than that. He began discussing with us about voting patterns depending on socio-economic status and region and general infrastructure question on the basis of our government. What surprised me the most was that he wasn’t asking for us to explain things to him, he had enough of an understanding of our government and the general voting and demographic patterns that he wanted to have a full blown discussion about them. This was the final event of my trip that really stood out to me, because this man who was a native Berliner knew just as much as I did about my own government, where as I new little to nothing about his government. Although this was not my only encounter discussing American Politics with German citizens, this was by far the most indepth and impactful interaction I had.

The fact that I became aware of my ignorance to the World’s problems and policies while realizing I know only the bare minimum about my own country’s policies that a normal citizen should know really left an impact on me. The fact I could go half-way around the world and someone who has never been to america could tell me all about it and how it works, while I sat back and was unable to say anything of substance about their country was not only embarrassing but also eye opening. I took away SO much more from this trip than wanting to become more politically and globally aware, however I now understand that barely know anything about my own country and its inner working’s and practically nothing about global issues and affairs in a time of not only domestic but international political unrest and intense disagreement. Now, it is something I look forward to striving to get more knowledgeable and involved in on a daily basis.

 

Attached are Pictures Sachsenhausen Concentration camp that I toured. My personal blog from the trip can be found on my U.OSU page

 

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