Stories from East Germany
by: Erol Barrett
My blog today is focused on a special story exclusive to the Babson College Political Economy of Sustainable Development: Case of Germany course. Our very own Professor Wong brought his former professor, Ina Sammler, on to a Webex meeting to discuss her childhood in the East of Germany. Professor Sammler currently lives in the South of Cyprus, also known as the Greek Cypriot portion of the island. The discussion began with Professor Sammler comparing the current divide present in Cyprus as the modern equivalent of divided Germany. The conflict between the Turkish North Republic of Cyprus and the Greek Cypriot Southern State is rooted deep in the culture of each respective region. Ina gave examples of the propaganda prevalent on each side of the border, including the rumors of Cypriot nationals disappearing during their visits to the Turkish North Republic. She explained how even the schools included propaganda within their textbooks, explaining the shortcomings of each opposing side.
The conversation then began to shift as Professor Wong prodded Ina with questions about her experience in Germany during the divide. She began by describing her childhood home in detail. Her extended family lived with her and helped run a family cheese manufacturing business. They set up the business in the basement of their home. Ina described the heavy regulations set upon the business by the GDR, which included limits on quantity and a fixed price to “maintain equal prices everywhere.” The undertones of the Stasi rule were prevalent in her description, with the reasoning for her family's garden being rooted in the short supply of food. Ina further explained how many necessary grocery items were rarely available within the supermarkets; this gave rise to sayings such as “You can't eat money.” Ina described this as the idea that even if you were relatively wealthy and could afford the grocery items you wanted, you just simply couldn't access them. However, Ina’s grandparents were well connected with the heads of the supermarket and made secret deals to obtain goods that weren't available otherwise. Professor Sammler explained how her grandparents sent her in order to disguise the dealings with a shroud of childhood innocence.
Despite these shortcomings, Ina emphasized that the commodities in the GDR were quite cheap, and prices remained the same across the region. This is where Ina began to express Ostalgia for her time in the GDR. She explained how she wasn't jealous of the West and appreciated the low-technology lifestyle that she led as a child. She would spend her time climbing trees and playing in the woods rather than watching TV or playing games. Also, the collective identity that was present within the GDR brought her a sense of longing for the community that was the entire region. However, this feeling of Ostalgia began to fade as she described her schooling experience growing up. Ina acknowledged that there was a significant amount of brainwashing and propaganda being perpetuated through the academic institutions of the GDR. She compared the images of the GDR’s leader Erich Honecker to the Nazi party’s propaganda of Hitler that was present in every classroom. She also explained how she had teachers who loved to beat and scold the children in her classes, including her. When she spoke up in class, the teacher would smack her fingers until they were blue. Also, children were put to work at a very young age to indoctrinate them into the working-class ideology of the GDR.
One of the pivotal moments in her life that completely shifted her perspective on the GDR was when she inquired about black dots on the map of Germany that blotted out certain politically important locations. This question prompted the principal to pull her into his office and essentially shame and punish her for speaking about political topics within the school. Ina later learned that she was extremely close to being expelled from school and subsequently blacklisted within society. Ina explained that this was a common occurrence across the GDR as teachers would work with the Stasi, reporting anyone who voiced political opinions or protests. They were viewed as fascist sympathizers and essentially blacklisted from ever finding any work or having social mobility for the rest of their life.
This divided history has greatly affected the current political environment within Germany as the country grapples with the enormous task of developing sustainable infrastructure to support the growing population. Many East Germans remain advocates of environmental protection acts and policies. East Germany was one of the first countries to take action and protest against the pollution of the environment and the destruction of vital ecosystems. East Germany declared that they would commit to ending the exploitation of the earth for its natural resources, citing their socialist society as the main reason for this shift's being possible. Interestingly enough, this belief has persisted into 2023 and is now supported by capitalist motivations for sustainable development. Not only is the introduction of sustainable infrastructure beneficial for the environment, but it also provides monetary gain for Germany. As more sustainable energy sources are implemented, the country recognizes independence from imports of energy from France and, until recently, Russia. Much of what fueled the differences between East and West Germany's views on sustainability and environmentalism is now proving to be effective in rallying the entire country behind environmental protection policies.
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