Does Unification Day Really Matter in Germany?

Today (3 Oct) is Unification Day in Germany, and a national holiday.  So there is this question lingering out there.....does it really matter?

Well, there are two answers to this.

First, for politicians and East Germans over the age of forty-five...it's a big deal.  Politicians from across the country, from the national level down to the metropolitan level....have a full schedule and likely up by 6 AM.  For folks like Chancellor Merkel, there's at least four different public settings for her to attend.  At the mayor-level (say in Wiesbaden), there's probably going to be a special lunch event with a speech period, and some kind of classical music deal at a local church with VIP political folks in attendance. 

For the East Germans over forty-five, they remember the period, the surveillance, the lack of commerce, the Trabant-car period, the dull TV programming, and the propaganda thrown at the public on a daily basis.  These people have a love-hate thing about unification.  Some areas of East Germany haven't really improved that much.  Unemployment in some areas still lingers in the 12-to-15 percent range.  In their mind, it's still not one Germany.

As for the second answer?  The rest of Germany?  There's zero interest.  Other than a national day off....the bulk of Germany simply doesn't care.  In fact, you can readily find a lot of German teenagers who marginally know that Germany existed as two nations, and can't really explain the reason. 

If you have any handyman skills, then you've probably got a couple of projects lined up for today....wallpapering a room, painting the ceiling, or assembling a new piece of furniture. 

Public TV?  There's probably around twenty-five hours of programming for the two main stations and the other dozen lesser public networks....dedicated to unification.  To be honest, it attracts little interest.

Back in 1990, this was a national pride type of day, and I suspect for two or three years, it ran that way.  Then, the hype dropped, and no one felt that excited.

So if you are in a German pub and wanting to toast the day to your German associate......then be surprised if he's not that excited.  If you are offering a free beer....he'll never turn that down though.