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Ethan Thomas
14289129
German Civilization 1850 to present
Entxk4@mail.missouri.edu
German Student Protests

Long after World War II was over the fight against Nazism was still a pressing issue. In

Germany, Nazism sympathizers made their presence known as they pushed similar political

agendas that were seen in the late 30s and 40s. Many people felt that Nazi supporters had gone

unpunished after the war and it was popular opinion to think that was the reason for the

support for Nazism that still existed in Germany in the 1960s. In the 1960s, universities felt the

pressure from socialist students who had maintained a similar authoritative mentality that

allowed the rise of the Nazi regime. The protest escalated as the students began to voice and

show frustration with the United States for their role in the Vietnam War. The student protest

played a large role in ending a rebirth of the Nazi regime.

Germany found itself in more turmoil as the new generations fought through the sins

of their fathers. “The younger generation argued that Germany had failed to "work through"

the Nazi past.” (Commentary) The young generation of university students found themselves in

disgust with the way the universities were being run. Students that were extreme protesters

could even be found at odds with the German university system and the authoritarian style

leadership. The students recognized the authoritarian teaching that had started to be an

undermining theme in the student’s studies. As the extreme students began to doubt the newly

established Federal Republic, their doubt became reason for them to protest. The doubt came

from seeing the teachings of Nazism making its way back into the universities, if it had started

to find its way back into the teaching and beliefs of those in charge of the German universities it
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wouldn’t be long before people in government would try to bring the old Nazi Regime back to

power. In the summer of 1966, student protests felt their possibility of fear become a reality as

the Christian Democratic Union and the Social Democrat Party joined together and became the

Grand Collation. This was cause for alarm among students and German citizens alike because

the Grand Collation was very similar to the process that Hitler used to gain power and

manipulate the government. The collation was a threat that students feared would remove the

check and balance system that had be set up to prevent a party or individual to gain all the

power. The protest continued to escalate as the Vietnam War continued and it only got worse

when the United States heightened their war efforts.

Post-War Germany owed most of its rebuilding effort to the United States. The United

States had stimulated the post-war economy of Germany even with the opposition of the other

allied countries. In 1961, the Berlin Wall was erected by the German Democratic Republic on

the east side of Berlin. The wall was to prevent the free movement of people between sides. It

was to physically divide the people, but the division purpose was to divide ideals and the

practices of government. The Eastern Berlin government used the wall to protect their socialist

agenda by stopping the free flow of people and ideas. The wall became more and more divisive

as people tried to cross over and would die trying. These deaths also became more and more

reason for student protesters to be angered. The wall was torn down in 1989.

German students that protested the Vietnam War, and hated the United States for

being involved, were mad at the foreign policy choices that the United States had made by

taking part in the war. The students thought the move was an imperialist by the United States
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government and this made the students feel betrayed and that the United States just wanted to

weaken every one so they could be the sole super power in the world.

As the world recovered from the war there were repercussions to the events that took

place. The weight of the war fell on the youth of Germany and the frustration turned into protests

and change. Even though the actions of the protesters could be extreme they were necessary to

bring about change. German students weren’t always right in the way that they perceived

situations, especially with the way they viewed the United States role in the Vietnam War. Even

though people were opposed to it in America, German students felt that all Americans were

imperialist which wasn’t the message the United States government was trying to send to the

world. The protests and the revolts against the university and government of Germany played a

large part in the end of a possible rebirth of the Nazi regime.