Project Proposal

I'm pretty set on the first project idea I stated in seminar, but I am not sure if I will be able to track down the right people in Berlin to really get this project in gear. We'll see how this turns out...

What did the Soviet guards and officials who spent (at most) 38 years along the Wall do immediately after it was torn down in 1989?

Altar items:

- unlocked handcuffs

- job application papers

- tour map of West Berlin

- old uniform for sale in a hobby shop or second-hand store

- graffiti/tagging done by East Berliners

I like this topic because it will help me inspect the psyche of "the others." I would love to get the chance to meet and greet men and women who maintained a barrier for almost four decades only to see it crumble. Most interestingly, I want to know their methods for re-establishing a normal life once the Berlin Wall fell. What jobs did they get? Do they ever hang out with West Berlin folks? Is there still an allegiance to the old, Soviet doctrines?