Twenty years ago the Berlin Wall, a post-war symbol of division between civilizations, fell. American leadership was crucial in defeating the Communist forces and ideology which had erected the wall in the depths of the Cold War. How the wall came to be, its implications for the divide between the democracies and the communist world and it's fall's impact on the West, will the subject of our riveting series of events over the next two weeks.

Saturday, November 7, 2009
7:00 pm

Cinema Gateway event
at the home of
Drs. Roberta and Arnold Seid
featuring the BBC Documentary
The Fall of the Berlin Wall
Directed by Peter Claus Schmidt



Relive the decade-ending event that startled the world in this exclusive documentary of the Berlin Wall's construction, stormy history and triumphant 1989/90 dismantling.This film was produced in English by a German televison company within a year of the Wall's destruction and accurately portrays the emotion and the historical facts surrounding the erection of the wall and its suddden demise.

With a special guest appearance by Michael Ott, Consul for Cultural and Press Affairs of the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Location: 427 16th Street in Santa Monica ( 90401)

Admission: $20.00 (with reception)

RSVP: AFA office (310) 444 3085


Wednesday, November 11, 2009
11:00 am - 1:00 pm

Western Word Radio
interview with
Frederick Taylor on his book
The Berlin Wall 1961-1989






Walls, like those of Hadrian and Maginot, do not have a good reputation, and Taylor (author of Dresden) has written a superb narrative of the rise and fall of the one that scarred Berlin between August 1961 and November 1989. Walls, too, are more than merely bricks and mortar and one of Taylor's major themes is the Berlin Wall's significance in the global power politics of the Cold War. According to Taylor, Kennedy, Macmillan and de Gaulle were not decisively opposed to the division between East and West Germans. Berlin, in truth, was a dangerously volatile potential flashpoint, and while the erection of the wall was brutal and oppressive to those caught behind or trying to get over it, it stabilized Europe and symbolized the differences between capitalism and communism. Reagan, however, emphasized the rights of the trapped and challenged Gorbachev to tear it down. The Kremlin, ironically, was undone by its own creation. Taylor's enthralling story, combined with impeccable research and its rich human interest, makes this as dramatically gripping as any of the spy thrillers that used the wall as a backdrop.

Listen in at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/WesternWordRadio


Thursday, November 12, 2009
7: 30 pm

Literary Cafe event to discuss
Jeffery Engels' book .
The Fall of the Berlin Wall: The Revolutionary Legacy of 1989
at the home of Libby Lieber
in Westwood.

See map






Marking the twentieth anniversary of the revolutions of 1989, Jeffrey Engel has brought together a terrific group of historians to revisit the political transformations that changed the world forever. By assessing the origins, meanings, and consequences of the end of the Cold War from the perspective of each of the major players -- China, Europe, the Soviet Union, and the United States--the result is comparative, international history at its best. Required reading for anyone who wants to understand both the promise -- and disappointments -- of the fall of the Berlin Wall."--Francis J. Gavin, Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law, University of Texas at Austin
"This small volume offers deep insights into the policies, ideas, and human decisions that brought the Cold War to a rapid and peaceful end. The authors trace the remarkable efforts at peaceful transformation in Europe, the brutal turn to repressive violence in China, and the rise of triumphal moralism in the United States. Better than any other book, this one explains how the end of the Cold War created the promises and opportunities of our present era. This is international history at its best -- a valuable contribution for anyone interested in contemporary foreign policy."--Jeremi Suri, University of Wisconsin.

With a special filmed report from Larry Greenfield, Executive Director of the Reagan Legacy Foundation, live from Berlin.

Location: 1415 Camden Avenue, #408 in Westwood ( 90025)

Admission: $15.00

Parking: Street parking available south of Ohio and Veteran's Park (see map)

RSVP: AFA office (310) 444 3085


Shattered Barriers: The Fall of the Berlin Wall
and its Impact on the West
An American Freedom Alliance publication

As its latest installment of booklets on important civilizational developments, AFA will offer an overview of the history of the Wall , its relevance as a symbol of the divide between East and West and the accompanying events in Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Roumania and Poland which led to the collapse of East European communism.

With original articles by Avi Davis, Ibn Warraq,Robert Spencer and many others.

Publication date: November 15, 2009