ABSTRACT
The general impression is that German reunification entailed West Germany simply taking over East Germany. This impression is deeply flawed. The authentic reunification story concerns the extent to which the German government—and the people of Germany—have, once again, chosen to discriminate against a particular group of its citizens. At a social level, the refusal to rectify wrongs of the past has precluded the emergence of an integrated community among those who remained in the east during communist times, and those who fervently wished to return to their ancestral homes and farms. Most immediate integration occurred when people from each of these groups could not avoid one another in the village centre, working in shops, forming partnerships, or restoring churches. These social interactions also fostered renewed economic activity. Returning families hired plumbers, carpenters, electricians, and other village residents— in addition to farm workers. These new economic interactions broke barriers and prejudices that had carried forward for generations.
