Let Them Come to Berlin

Berlin is one of the great cities of Europe, with 160 or so galleries and museums. Dinner at the top of the Reichstag is spectacular, especially knowing the World War II battles that were fought right inside the chambers. The gates of Ishtar, Nefertitis head and the altar of Zeus from Pergamum rival any antiquities you can find in the ancient or modern world. When I was there, the city was just coming to terms with its Nazi past. Signs had recently gone up showing where Hitlers bunker had beenits underneath a mundane parking lot serving a mundane apartment block. Albert Speers air ministry is still intact, having suffered little damage in the war. Architect Daniel Liebskinds Jewish Museum is a must-see, as is the Holocaust memorial. Inadvertently and ironically, but perhaps fittingly, it was built over the ruins of Goebbels house. The Olympic stadium is monumental. As big as it is, there is room for 600,000 people between it and a monument to German soldiers of World War I. It was from the balcony of that monument that Hitler introduced Mussolini to a crowd of hundreds of thousands. Barack Obama spoke in Berlin during this campaign, but its either too soon or too unfair to compare his remarks to those famous speeches by Kennedy and Reagan. In those days, the world was absolutely clear about good and evil. Todays world is more ambiguous, and Obamas speech reflects that. He tours the evils of the complex world. The ancient history of the airlift and wall might be lost on todays audiences. Even in Berlin, I found many in the east who wondered how much better off they were with 20 different kinds of butter to buy and the time-consuming job of finding the best price. In the west, some blamed a downturn in the economy on the fall of the wall, which had flooded labor markets with easterners. Obamas speech presupposes a unanimity on the issue of the wall that may not exist.
LET THEM COME TO BERLIN 167

Obama will need something more specific than People of Berlinpeople of the worldthis is our moment. This is our time. Below are some specifics worth considering. Two of the greatest political speeches of all time were made in the same spot, by charismatic but ideologically opposite American politicians, decades apart. What made the speeches by John Kennedy and Ronald Reagan great can be a lesson for any politician who is governing or campaigning. Kennedys speech is known as the Ich bin ein Berliner (I am a Berliner) speech. Reagans is known as the tear down this wall speech. Right away there appears to be a contrast. Kennedy is expressing solidarity with entrapped Berliners who live deep inside Communist East Germany. Reagan is confrontational, and personally so, citing Gorbachev by name. Kennedys speech is much shorter than Reagans, occupying not much more than one typed page. Reagans runs to more than four pages. Kennedy spoke on June 26, 1963, from the balcony of the city hall. A writer and former journalist, JFK is said to have added the famous German phrase as he walked up the stairs of the city hall. He and his interpreter practiced the phrase, as was Kennedys habit. He used Mayor Willy Brandts office for his rehearsal. As a young senator, Kennedy had campaigned from the right on nuclear warheads and catching up to the Soviets in the arms race. He also had to look tough on Communism, especially after the Bay of Pigs. Ironically, though, his message seemed to accommodate the stalemate in divided Berlin and Germany. His remarks were interpreted at the time as acknowledging that East Berlin was part of the Soviet Bloc. By the time Kennedy spoke, the Berlin wall had gone up and many had tried to escape to the West. The first person we know of who tried escaping was shot to death in 1962. In a nuclear standoff, its hard to judge what would have been the best adviceconfrontation or solidarity with the oppressed. Kennedy chose the latter. The speech itself is classic Kennedy construction. There is the great repetition of the phrase inviting skeptics to visit Berlin: There are many people in the world who really dont understand, or say they dont, what is the great issue between the free world and the Communist world. Let them come to Berlin. There are some who say that Communism is the wave of the future. Let them come to Berlin. And there are some who say in Europe and elsewhere we can work with the Communists. Let them come to
168 LET THEM COME TO BERLIN

Berlin. And there are even a few who say that it is true that Communism is an evil system, but it permits us to make economic progress... Let them come to Berlin. Ironically, he was deriding conditions in East Berlin from West Berlin, controlled by the Allies. But the point was made, and the cadence was appropriate. Kennedy also used a version of his inaugural Ask not... construction, turning the tables on citizens who would seek handouts from their countrys government and the countries of the world who would seek unlimited aid from America. In Berlin this turned into a request for citizens to lift your eyes beyond the dangers of today, to the hopes of tomorrow, beyond the freedom merely of this city of Berlin, or your country of Germany, to the advance of freedom everywhere, beyond the wall to the day of peace with justice, beyond yourselves and ourselves to all mankind. He also echoed John Donne (No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main) and turned it into, Freedom is indivisible, and when one man is enslaved, all are not free. As Donne said, I am involved in mankind. But the most remarkable thing is the shortness of the speechperhaps three minutes at average reading speed. It is also remarkable that the famous quote is just six lines in, with minimal buildup. Kennedy mentions dignitaries, pledges support and says hes proud to be a guest in Berlin. Then paragraph two contains the semantic bombshell: Two thousand years ago the proudest boast was civis Romanus sum [I am a Roman citizen]. Today, in the world of freedom, the proudest boast is Ich bin ein Berliner [I am a Berliner]. The speech ends with a small rewrite and powerful repetition: All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin, and, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words, Ich bin ein Berliner. The fact that 24 years later, almost to the day, Ronald Reagan would even consider speaking in Berlin is a measure of his fortitude and confidence. By June 12, 1987, Kennedys speech was legend and rightly magnified by the premature loss of the young president. Kennedy owned speaking in Berlin as Marlon Brando owned the role of Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire. Dont play the part is normally the best advice. But off Reagan went. Reagans speech marked his second visit to Berlin. Perhaps not to be outdone, he used two longish colloquial German expressionsin
LET THEM COME TO BERLIN 169

German. He even evoked Kennedy when he stated Standing before the Brandenburg Gate, every man is a German, separated from his fellow men. Every man is a Berliner, forced to look upon a scar. Reagans is a more substantial speech. He reviews the Marshall plan and quotes the former secretary of state who sought to rebuild Europe after World War IIOur policy is directed not against any country or doctrine, but against hunger, poverty, desperation, and chaos. Those were believable words when America was at the height of its reputation in the world. A great old politico, too, Reagan praises the fine homes ... avenues ... parkland ... opera ... theatres, and museums of the city. He denounces the failure of Communism, including its inability to feed its citizens a message not heard enough during the Cold War. Then, two pages in, comes the semantic payoff, but with the veiled threat that the punchline could also be a real punch from the Gipper: General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall! Remarkably, the speech goes on for another two pages. Reagan is only halfway through. He calls for a reduction of arms on both sides. He advocates International sports competitions and, echoing Berlin graffiti, comes back to the meat of the matter by stating This wall will fall. Beliefs become reality. Yes, across Europe, this wall will fall. For it cannot withstand faith; it cannot withstand truth. The wall cannot withstand freedom. Reagans speech was controversial. To mark his arrival, 25,000 protesters smashed windows and fought police in West Berlin. Staffers argued about whether to keep the challenge to Gorbachev in the text. In the end, Reagan is said to have made the final decision. He spoke from the historic Brandenburg Gate behind two sheets of bulletproof glass. Historians still argue about whether his speech did any good or not. Thats an argument one can have over every speech. But at least these two turned a few memorable phrases and were on the right side of the issues, in the right place, at the right timeno small feat in politics.

170

LET THEM COME TO BERLIN