Germany 
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SOURCE: New York Times
4/28/2023
In Germany, Soviet Memorials Raise Painful Memories, But are Protected
Germany stands alone among European nations in protecting many Soviet-era monuments in the former East Germany. Honoring victims of Nazis has long been a reason, but this has been complicated by German support for Ukraine after its invasion by Russia.
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SOURCE: Reuters
1/3/2023
Poland Claims Germany Refuses Participation in Talks for WWII Reparations
Six million Poles, including three million Polish Jews, were killed during the second world war. Poland's nationalist government seeks to void agreements made under Communism to release Germany from liability.
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SOURCE: Washington Post
11/27/2022
Black Germans Hope to Change Name of Berlin's "Uncle Tom's Cabin" Metro Station
Activists identify a German fascination with the American South as part of an effort to portray modern, increasingly multicultural Germany, as a white nation.
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SOURCE: Washington Post
6/3/2021
Germany Faced its Horrible Past. Can the US Do the Same?
by Michele Norris
"A full accounting of slavery is one of terror and trauma, and for decades the natural inclination was to ask, why would anyone want to claim that history?... What happens if we don’t?" Michele Norris's essay features University of Texas historian Daina Ramey Berry.
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SOURCE: New York Times
10/3/2020
Germany’s Far Right Reunified, Too, Making It Much Stronger
German reunification allowed the return of far-right political movements, in large part because communist education in East Germany did not emphasize the role of nazism in the nation's history.
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10/4/2020
Combatting History “Indoctrination” in 1945 and 2020
by Brian M. Puaca
As the new 1776 Commission begins to consider how to wield history as a weapon against indoctrination, America’s educational work in Germany can serve as a guidepost for a commitment to preparing vigilant young men and women to build and defend democracy.
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9/13/2020
How an American TV Mini-Series Helped the Germans Acknowledge the Holocaust
by Robert Brent Toplin
An American television minseries overcame initial skepticism by German authorities to rouse public conscience about the Holocaust and the complicity of ordinary Germans with persecution and genocide. Americans hesitant toward "political" popular culture should consider its contributions to truth and reconciliation.
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8/23/2020
In Removing Confederate Symbols, US Military Follows German Military’s Example
by Fred Zilian
With unification, a fundamental break with the values of the East German Communist Party was necessary. Former East German soldiers would now belong to an army of a democracy, rooted in the concept of the “citizen in uniform."
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8/16/2020
Trump's Removal of Troops from Germany Follows a Trend
by Michael Creswell
While Trump's decision to halve the contingent of US troops in Germany has drawn bipartisan condemnation, critics should recognize that whether the decision is wise or foolish for today's context, it is in line with decades of efforts to shift the burdens of collective security onto NATO allies.
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SOURCE: New York Times
8/11/2020
Museum’s Future Clouded by Chance Discovery: Swastika Hiding in Plain Sight
The discovery of a Nazi symbol in the mosaic floor of a German museum has prompted bitter debate about its creator’s past and the institution’s role.
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SOURCE: New York Times
8/8/2020
America’s Military Should Confront Its Past, Not Bury It
by Elliot Ackerman
The German military’s infiltration by far-right extremists should be a warning for how we confront our own troubled history.
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SOURCE: CNN
8/4/2020
German Ambassador Pick Disparaged Immigrants and Refugees, Called for Martial Law at US-Mexico Border
Douglas Macgregor described the German cultural concept of "Vergangenheitsbewältigung," which seeks to "cope with the past" and confront the atrocities the country committed in World War II, as a "sick mentality" and he downplayed the country's Nazi history.
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SOURCE: The New York Times
6/23/2020
In Germany, Confronting Shameful Legacy Is Essential Part of Police Training
In the postwar era, Germany fundamentally redesigned law enforcement to prevent past atrocities from ever repeating. Its approach may hold lessons for police reform everywhere.
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SOURCE: The New York Times
6/9/2020
Its Defenses Undone by a Virus, France Seeks Lessons From a Lost War
Marc Bloch's book "Strange Defeat," written in 1940 about France’s defeat in World War II, has taken on a curious resonance as the country gazes across the border at Germany and asks why it has weathered the pandemic better.
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SOURCE: The New York Times
5/31/2020
Nazi or Hero? Historian Looks at the Stories a German Consultant Told of His Father
A study from historian Michael Wolffsohn finds some truth and some falsehoods in a prominent businessman’s portrayal of his father as a Nazi resister.
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SOURCE: Upworthy
4/28/2020
75 Years Ago, the U.S. Blew Up a Giant Swastika in Nazi Germany and it's Still so Satisfying to Watch
Local authorities in Nurnberg recently voted to conserve (not rebuild or renovate) the site of some of Hitler's most notorious speeches.
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SOURCE: World Economic Forum
4/26/2020
Germany Enlists Humanities Scholars to End Coronavirus Lockdown
Germany has done more than other nations to enlist the advice of philosophers, historians of science, theologians and jurists as it navigates the delicate ethical balancing act of reopening society while safeguarding the health of the public.
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SOURCE: New York Times
3/17/2020
She Tracked Nazi-Looted Art. She Quit When No One Returned It.
A researcher stopped working for a German museum after she says she lost faith in its commitment to return works with tainted provenances.
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SOURCE: NY Times
2/19/20
When Jim Crow Reigned Amid the Rubble of Nazi Germany
by Alexis Clark
Thousands of African-American troops were sent to a defeated Germany to promote democracy, even as they were confined to the social order of Jim Crow.
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SOURCE: NY Times
2/13/20
How Dresden Looked After a World War II Firestorm 75 Years Ago
Mourning all of the war’s victims has been central to Germany’s remembrance efforts since reunification in 1990.
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