World Freedom Day Is Today!

Did you know that today, Nov 9th, is World Freedom Day? It marks not the rise, but the fall of the Berlin wall that divided Germany physically and virtually, and ended 31 years ago.

World Freedom Day was founded by American President George W. Bush in 2001 and has been celebrated annually since. But what is the Berlin wall, anyway?

It all started when the U.S., France, and Britain allied with the Soviet Union in WW2 and defeated the Nazis. They occupied different parts of Germany, with the Soviets forming the German Democratic Republic in the east, while the Federal Republic of Germany formed in the west. Long story short, the two were soon divided by a physical barrier 106 km long and 3.6 m high made from concrete. This caused mass protests, and on Nov 9th, 1989, people stormed gates in the wall, so guards finally had to open them, ending the dark Berlin wall. After 4 decades, Germany was at last reunified.

I think that this part of history is very interesting, how allies turn into enemies or frenemies, all behind one holiday!