Introduction

The World of 1991

The decade of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher has ended. We have left behind the big beats, the big hair, and big fashion trends, all of which seemed like a good idea at the time.
The Cold War is in its final stretch. President Mikhail Gorbachev, leader of the Soviet Union, averts a coup d’etat attempt by communist party hardliners, known as the August Putsch. Although unsuccessful, the coup ultimately ends Gorbachev’s attempt at political reform, beginning the USSR’s rapid dissolution. Under President George H. W. Bush, the United States emerges victorious as the only remaining global superpower. Some political scientists, such as Francis Fukuyama, go as far as to proclaim this era as “the end of history,” the endpoint of mankind’s ideological evolution with liberal democracy as its final, crowning achievement.

The Persian Gulf War dominates the headlines and television; a new kind of war with stealth bombers and computer-guided missiles. The HIV/AIDS epidemic seems impossible to contain and constantly remains in people’s minds. Following the Romanian Revolution, the world becomes aware of the suffering and summary mistreatment of children in the country’s packed orphanages.

In the United States, the crack epidemic continues ravaging inner-city communities. The beating of Rodney King creates headlines around the world, raising public concerns about the police’s treatment of minorities. Environmental destruction gains media attention with the ozone hole, global warming, nuclear power plant safety, and oil spills in the news. Meanwhile, people try to tune out the world, losing themselves in popular TV shows such as Beverly Hills 90210 and The Jerry Springer Show.

In the laboratories, the mysteries of our DNA are being unlocked. We gaze toward the heavens, launching both the Space Station Freedom and the Hubble Telescope into orbit. Music is enjoyed on CD, cassette tapes, and vinyl. New, edgy styles like alt-rock, grunge, and gangsta rap are moving up the charts. Less avant-garde, but overly popular, eurodance and europop dominate the airwaves and dancefloors in many parts of Europe, gaining international attention. Movies are watched in the cinemas or on rented videotapes, as blockbusters like Terminator 2: Judgement Day and Ghost capture the world’s imagination.

Cell phones exist, but they are rare, prohibitively expensive, and as big as bricks. Mobile coverage is limited. Phone booths are common, and finding someone’s number requires searching the phone book. The Internet is still an experiment in its very early stages. Primitive networks using modems and phone lines exist only for the tech savvy and early adopters.

Germany in 1991

In the aftermath of the Second World War, Germany became a divided nation. In the East, the German Democratic Republic was a part of the Warsaw Pact, allied with the Soviet Union. In the West, the Federal Republic of Germany was part of the precursor to the European Union (EU), NATO member, and close ally of the United States. Due to social and political change, the East German regime started to falter together with the Soviet Union, dissolving not long after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989.

Despite its reunification in October 1990, the German nation remains torn. The former East Germany is economically on its knees, and people divided by two political systems for more than 40 years must now accept Chancellor Helmut Kohl as their common leader. Citizens are coming to grips with the dramatic changes, as well as struggling with ingrained suspicions, old grudges, and an “Us-versus-Them” mentality. But there is also a growing sense of hope. Long-separated families are reunited, and Germany is becoming a sovereign nation once more.