This educational series on the socialist agenda and realities of the GDR explores aspects of everyday life, provides facts about the country’s social achievements, and examines the political and economic foundations of this socialist state. By reflecting on the lived experiences of daily life, which are generally left out of the dominant narrative promoted by the market economy, the research centre Internationale Forschungsstelle DDR (IF DDR) and Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research intend to make a useful contribution to the debates currently taking place within progressive movements. After all, millions of people around the world are still fighting for advancements that were once a given in this socialist system but were eliminated with its downfall.
This event will invite speakers to present their personal experiences within the GDR and explore the importance of researching its history. Speakers include:
Bruni de la Motte and John Green — authors of GDR: Stasi State or Socialist Paradise?
Victor Grossman - author, defected from the US-Army in 1952 to the GDR
Ronnie Kasrils — former anti-apartheid activist and minister in the ANC government
Florentine Morales Sandoval and Franziska Kleiner — researchers, International Research Centre GDR (IF DDR)
The event will be chaired by Prof Marjorie Mayo (Marx Memorial Library/Goldsmith University).