The Path to Freedom - 35 Jahre Mauerfall

The demands made by protesters during the Peaceful Revolution will be showcased in a special exhibition created in cooperation with numerous experts from memorial sites, foundations and academia. At seven ‘stations’ along the path of the former Berlin Wall, this exhibition will spotlight the path to freedom. Who were the key actors in the Peaceful Revolution? What role did the democracy movements in Eastern Europe play in the protests in the GDR? What was the significance of flight and emigration? How did the protests emerge and what public forums were available to citizens of a country with no freedom of the press? How did events on 9 November 1989 play out and how did German unification actually come about?

Ausstellung auf Holztafeln zeigt historische Fotos auf Ufergehweg — © Kulturprojekte | Alexander Rentsch

Visitors will be invited to engage with explanatory texts, eyewitness stories and moving photos that allow them to deepen their knowledge about historical events and share this knowledge with others.

These are the seven topics that are presented:

Opposition & Protest

Place: Futurium

What were the living conditions of people in the GDR and how were individuals there able to express their discontent? This section of the exhibition explores the types of opposition that were possible in the GDR and the opportunities and spaces available for those brave enough to protest.

Demonstrations & Participation

Place: Kapelle-Ufer

This section of the exhibition looks at the origins of the Monday Demonstrations and follows them all the way through to the emergence of mass protest marches. Another key focus here will be the demands and opinions of GDR citizens.

Democracy & Unification

Place: Marie-Elisabeth-Lüders-Haus

Freedom came before unification. This section of the exhibition illustrates the progression of events from the first and only free elections in the GDR all the way to German unification. It also looks at the years-long process of coming to terms with the Stasi legacy.cy.

Fall of the Wall

Place: Brandenburger Tor

This section of the exhibition focuses exclusively on 9 November 1989 – the day the Wall came down. Particular emphasis will be placed on the significance of that day as well as its reception worldwide and in Germany’s culture of remembrance.

Revolutions in Eastern Europe

Place: Lennédreieck

The democracy movements in Poland and Hungary were forerunners of the revolutionary events in the GDR. This section of the exhibition highlights the ways in which developments in Eastern Europe acted as catalysts for the Peaceful Revolution. It also takes a look at the toppling of other communist dictatorships in Eastern and Central Europe.

Flight & Emigration

Place: Checkpoint Charlie

This section of the exhibition sheds light on the reasons why so many people sought to flee or emigrate from the GDR. It also looks at the mass exodus that began in the wake of the revolutionary upheavals and addresses the various ways in which critics of the system were treated.

Media & Public Sphere

Place: Jerusalemer Straße

All media in the GDR were controlled by the government. It was not possible for people to engage in any free and independent expression of opinion. This section of the exhibition shows how the GDR opposition movement was nevertheless able to communicate and build an underground network.

historisches Foto einer Demonstration in Leipzig, viele junge Menschen tragen mit erhobenen Armen Bänder, die sie zusammenhalten und Protestbanner mit Schlagwort Demokraite und christlichen Kreuzen — © picture-alliance / epd / Martin Jehnichen

historisches Foto zeigt Menschenmasse demonstrierend mit vielen tschechischen Flaggen — © picture-alliance / dpa / Lehtikuva Oy

Familien mit Kindern laufen schnell aus dem Bild. Sie schauen fröhlich und aufgeregt. — © ullstein bild – AP

Feiernde junge Menschen auf der mit Grafittis besprühten Berliner Mauer. Jubelnd heben einige ihre Arme in die Höhe. — © ullstein bild / Roehrbein

Vorplatz vor dem Bundestag bei Nacht mit Menschenmassen, die Deutschland- und EU-Fahnen schwenken — © picture-alliance / ZB / Jens Büttner