Berlin has
been after World War II the one German city where the division of Germany was still
visible. After the fall of the wall Berlin has become the city where the
process of unification – infrastructure, salaries and pensions, the mixing of
the populations – has made more progress than in the rest of the country. There
are still significant cultural differences. Nevertheless, Berlin has become a
magnet for the pioneers of the IT-economy, for the international nightclub and
party-goers, and for many new citizens. The year 2015 marks a historical incision.
While a majority of Germans greeted the migration of 900 000 refugees from
Syria and Africa – 85000 ended up in Berlin – with an unprecedented welcome
culture, a minority reacted with fear, aggression and arson assaults against
homes for asylum seekers. One half of these attacks are committed in East Germany
with a fifth of Germany’s population. A new right wing party (AFD) is
establishing itself with two digit results in recent state elections – a new
phenomenon in post war Germany. The issue of the “refugee crisis” dominates the
debates of the whole country and creates new divisions and alliances – not only
in Germany but also in the EU. Two unanswered questions seem to fuel the
general confusion: How to integrate millions of mainly muslim migrants? How to
cope with a new era of mass migration of which we have only seen the beginning
in 2015?