Where are my German reunification fireworks?

Once the Berlin Wall fell on the 9^th of November, 1989, Germany began the process of reunification and the official treaty was signed in 1990. Die deutsche Einheit (German unity) is celebrated on the 3^rd of October every year with a public holiday. It isn’t celebrated on the day the wall fell, ironically, because this just happens to also be the anniversary of the first large-scale Nazi-led pogrom against the Jews in 1938 (the Kristallnacht), so was rightly considered an inappropriate date for a national holiday.

I usually enjoy going to the odd German festival – and festivals is definitely something the Germans do a lot of – so a few years ago now, I looked into what kind of local celebrations I could attend. I couldn’t come up with anything. Why don’t the Germans celebrate their day of unity in the same way as the Americans on the 4^th of July, for example? It seemed odd to me. I learned that there is a big official celebration that rotates every year – this year it took place in Munich – but otherwise no flags, no parades, no fireworks, no celebrations on a more local level. The nearest the Germans get to a national festival it would seem is the annual Oktoberfest (which once you have experienced once, you want to steer well clear of for the rest of your life.)

Ask a German why there are no celebrations and you don’t get any clear answers – they don’t know (or won’t say.) Is it really indifference to their country becoming one again? Are they silently protesting against the “Solidaritätszuschlag” or “Soli”? I doubt it. This is, by the way, a reunification tax introduced in 1991 to help finance the reunification. I pay around 18 Euros a month on this tax – and there is no way of opting out like with the church tax. So, what is my money being spent on and why isn’t my being spent on some pretty fireworks? Over 10 years of work here, I roughly calculate my contribution at 2500 Euros worth of reunification tax. Multiply that by some 80 million Einwohner and you get a sizeable sum. So, again, some pretty fireworks would be nice, please. Or even a free Bratwurst would do me.

Perhaps the fact that my money isn’t being spent on fireworks or Bratwurst can be put down to the fact that the average German is still very hesitant about displaying any kind of national pride. A lingering sense of shame and difficulty coming to terms with the past (the so-called Vergangenheitsbewältigung) alongside the simple fact that it is always hard to attach a specific date to a reunification and it is ultimately a process that will take years to truly achieve probably all go some way towards explaining the non-existent fireworks. I did have a brief glimmer of hope of finally getting my fireworks when Germany hosted the World Cup in 2006 - it was nice to see the Germans regain some form of “healthy” patriotism; showing the world they were proud to be German. Clearly not enough patriotism, however, as several years later, still no fireworks or Bratwurst in sight on the 3^rd of October.

Does anyone else have a logical explanation for the lack of celebrations? In any case, we (and I’m sure I speak on behalf of all Germans when I say this) remain grateful for the extra day off work – long live a reunified Germany.