Department of History

“Ich bin ein Berliner,” “Bananen für alles,” and “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” graced the plywood alongside less symbolic messages as “Jessica was here” and “Mearle.” West Virginia University students had left their mark over the course of a week, and whatever the message, barely an inch of the original gray of the wall was discernable along the length of our commemorative Berlin Wall on the evening of November 9, as a small crowd gathered and prepared to destroy our handiwork. A simple idea had certainly gone a long way from casual mention at Phi Alpha Theta’s first officers meeting last spring, where we brainstormed for ideas for programs and especially how to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. When the idea first arose, Dr. Katherine Aaslestad, one of our faculty sponsors, suggested partnering with the German club, a partnership we happily entered into early in the semester with only vague notions of just how we would memorialize the events of November 1989.
Countless phone calls and emails to Facilities Management later, I found myself standing in Lowes on Halloween morning at the “Project Desk” with fellow History Club member Maggie Wodziak, who was as clueless as I in the intricacies of constructing replica Berlin Walls. Thankfully, the experts at Lowes were able to sketch out just how we should construct the Wall, and we soon left, nervously navigating our way (with 12’ boards strapped to the top of the SUV) to German Club sponsor Dr. Deborah Janson’s garage, where more of our members (James Horst and Steve D’Adamo), Amber Lane (German Club President) and Josh Marris of the German club were waiting to construct the Wall. A few hours later, with the help of James and Steve’s expertise with power drills (borrowed from our professors), we had our wall in two pieces, ready to be transported downtown for final construction on Monday. Providentially, our transportation dilemma was solved by Dr. Janson’s neighbor’s U-Haul truck. In a joint-department faculty effort, our materials were moved to the Life Sciences front lawn.
On Monday morning, we finished the construction of the Wall, and Amber and I proudly made the first “tag” on the Wall. Amber had suggested a simple but clear message: “Make Love, not Wall.” I then had the privilege of working the first spray paint shift, where we provided students with both the materials and encouragement to leave some kind of mark on the Wall. Students from across the downtown campus left message on our replica of the Berlin Wall. Our most serious problem was writer’s block, with a few individuals lingering indecisively before making a small design and going to class. Some confidently strode up to the wall, paint in hand, and expertly left beautiful artwork or bold messages like “Live and Rise as this Wall Falls,” while others less experienced in the art of graffiti meekly left only their names, words like “Love,” and peace signs. None failed to notice that a 24 foot wall had appeared overnight on campus.
Our intention had been to spread awareness about the anniversary and the significance of the Berlin Wall today, especially to a generation that was either yet unborn or in its infancy when the Wall collapsed. I noted with pride that WVU students, who refuse to heed life-threatening traffic, informative flyers, or messages attached to free candy, could not help but stop to stare at or ask about our Wall and its importance. Mission accomplished on day one.
But our commemorative events were not finished. To complement the building, decorating with graffiti and demolishing the replica Wall, we sponsored two movie nights, a discussion panel, and a party. Dr. Janson moderated the discussion panel which featured Dr. Aaslestad of the History Department and CIP participants from Germany Diana Kietzmann and Marlies Waterman, who provided contrasting perspectives from both East and West Germany. The room in Woodburn Hall was packed and we were forced to take chairs from other rooms to accommodate the large audience that had come to participate in the forum. Our subsequent movie nights and party were also successful in spreading awareness in a way that would engage both the general public and casual observer.
The culmination of our efforts arrived on the evening of Monday, November 9. Amber and I greeted the cluster of individuals of all ages who had gathered to participate in the symbolic demolition. We thanked facilities for providing lighting and guidance, our club members and sponsors for their support and hard work, and everyone who had joined us for the event. After a few words about the larger meanings of tearing down our representation of the Berlin Wall and after two club members symbolically climbing over the Wall, Phi Alpha Theta Vice President James Horst took the first swing at the Wall, successfully smashing a hole in oppression and division. From there, members of the crowd, club officers, and sponsors alike took hits at the Wall. Much as the real Wall now finds itself in pieces across the country and in the hands of individuals, I gathered remaining pieces of the Wall to pass out to onlookers as souvenirs to remember our Wall.
It was a meaningful night and a week to remember, and as the final fragments of the Wall were being loaded into a Facilities truck, I couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight of a single banana left behind, likely from one of our German observers. “Bananas for all, indeed,” I thought.

Beth Parnicza is a senior history major and president of Phi Alpha Theta