9781422277706

O O n November 9, 1989, tens of thousands of cheer- hated symbol, intent on breaking it apart. They were East Germans, exulting in their new freedom to travel across the border from the east to the west. Since 1961, that had not been possible. For 28 years the Berlin Wall had stopped them. A Political Milestone The wall was built by a repressive government called the German Democratic Republic. The nation’s name did not reflect the true ideology of the GDR, which was neither demo- cratic nor a republic. In a democracy, all people have the right to participate in government. In a republic , citizens vote for the ing people celebrated the fall of a concrete wall in Berlin. Some of them took hammers and chisels to the

7