BÄRBEL FÖRSTER EDITED BY - Rosa-Lux

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    TABLE OF CONTENTS   

INTRODUCTION

Bernd Riexinger 16 Memory

Thomas Händel 20 LearningfromHistory

Jochen Weichold 24 IntheFootstepsofDieLinke’sCouncilofElders

Claudia Gohde 27 OnArchivinginDieLinke’sPartyCentralOffice

Petra Pau 30 MyBlueNotebook

Sahra Wagenknecht 32 HomesickfortheFuture

Dietmar Bartsch 36 OnElationandRemainingGrounded

Margret Geitner 40 WhoWritesHistory?

Jan Korte 43 DieLinke’sMemoryWorkinParliament:

“ParliamentaryFileCreators?”

Bernd Hüttner 47 PreservingMovements

Peter Delis 51 SpecificFeaturesoftheTraditionoftheGermanPeaceUnion

Gregor Gysi 54 ArchivesandPersonalTestimonials

Friedrich Burschel 56 YourOwnHistory

Wolfgang Gehrcke 63 LookingBackWithoutAnger

CREATORS OF MEMORY PARTY

PARLIAMENT

FOUNDATION

MOVEMENT

INDIVIDUAL

Tom Strohschneider 70 AQuestionofTransmission

Alex Demirovic 74 ArchivesandPolitics

Albert Scharenberg 77 WrestingHistoryfromtheGripsofConformism

Jörn Schütrumpf 81 ArchivesAgainstHistoricalAmnesia

Marga Voigt 84 “Left-WingMemory”inLetters:PerspectivesofHistory?

USERS OF MEMORYPOLITICS

SCIENCE

JOURNALISM

Dagmar Enkelmann 4 Editorial

Florian Weis 6 TheValueofBreathingDeeply

Evelin Wittich 10 FoundingMoments

Jochen Weichold und Christine Gohsmann 114 FilesSittingontheShelvesofStrangers?

ArchivalWorkinSouthAfrica

Onlya“ThinBooklet”

“ButEverythingisOnline!”

TheAutumnMeetings

InContrasttotheArchivesofKingSolomon

DetailedForensicWork

“ArchivesAren’tProfitable,ButTheyDoPayOff!”

ALast-MinuteVisit

Andrey K. Sorokin 90 The20thCentury:LearningfromHistory

Anja Kruke and Andreas Marquet 93 TheArchivesofCollectiveMemory

Uwe Michel 97 KnowledgeoftheFuture

Andreas Steigmeier and Tobias Wildi 99 ADigitalMemory?

Christian Koller and Urs Kälin 103 TrustisGood–andEssential

Bärbel Förster 107 Ethical,Responsible,Professional,andComprehensive

CUSTODIANS OF MEMORYDUTIES

CHALLENGES

DEMANDS

FRAGMENTS OF MEMORYSTORIESFROMA20-YEARPERIOD

123 INDEX OF AUTHORS

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WhenIthinkaboutourArchivesforDemo-craticSocialism,thisquotefromPeterWeisscomestomind:“Speaking,reading,andwritingareinfluxoverthecourseoftime.Sentencesbegettheiropposites,questionsbegetanswers,answersbegetnewques-tions.Claimsarerevoked,whathasbeenrevokedissubjecttorenewedevaluation.Thewriterandreaderareinmotion,theyarealwayssubjecttochange.”1

Archivesprovidegenerationstocomewithinformationaboutspecificperiodsoftime,aboutviewsandinsights,abouteventsand

processes,aboutpoliticalactors,andtheirthoughtsanddecisions.Thedocumentsinthefiles,thepictures,thesoundandvideorecordingspreservewhathasbeensaidandwrittenastestimoniestocertainhistoricalperiods.Theyareaprerequisiteforfuturegenerationstobeabletoauthenticallyen-gagewiththisperiodoftime,asknewques-tions,andperhapsfindsurprisinganswersandotherassessments.TheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungarchivehasexistedfor20years,anditisnosecretthatourArchivesforDemocraticSocialismissomethingspecial.Itisone—perhapseventhe—memoryofleftistmovements,social-istideas,left-wingparty-politicaldevelop-ments,anddemocraticactionsince1989.Andyetourarchiveisonlyasgoodaswemakeit.Ofcourse,siftingthroughpersonaldocu-mentsafteranactivepoliticallifeanden-trustingthemtoanarchiverequireseffortandcaninsomeinstancesevenbepainful;itisnotaneasydecisiontomake.Butletusbehonest:whenheldinprivateowner-ship,documentsareoftenstoredinboxesinabasementoronthefloor,ofcourseal-wayswiththeintentionoftakinggoodcareofthem,ofonedaylookingthroughthem,perhapswritingabook,orconsideringpro-fessionalarchivingatalaterdate.

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ItisuptoustokeepourhistoryandthatofDieLinkeanditspredecessors—beittheSo-cialistUnityPartyofGermany(SED)/PartyofDemocraticSocialism(PDS),DieLinke.PDS,orLabourandJustice–TheElectoralAlternative(WASG)—authenticandaliveinhistoricalmemory.Butwearenotstart-ingfromscratch.Twentyyearsofarchivalworkhavemadenumerousdocumentsontheoriginanddevelopmentofourpartyandleftistmovementsavailable,aswellasontheeffectofleft-wingforcesondemocraticdecision-makingprocesses.Thearchivealsoincludesdocumentsonindividualsthatwerepartofthesedevelopmentsandprocesses.Scholars,students,andjournal-istsalreadyactivelyuseourarchives.Everyarchiveispartofthecollectivememoryofsocietyasawhole,includingourArchivesforDemocraticSocialism.Wehavechosentoseizethearchive’s20thanniversaryasanopportunitytotakestockandformulatenewgoals.Thisincludespresentingitsvariousfunctionsasthememoryoftheparty,thememoryoftheRLS,thememoryofparlia-mentarywork,thememoryofsocialmove-ments,andthememoryofpoliticalfigures,inadditiontoencouragingreflectionandparticipation.Thispublicationshouldhelpyourecognizethevalueofyourowndocu-mentsandmotivateyoutoaddthemtothe

collectivememoryoftheleft.Theauthorsdescribewhattheyassociatewithleft-wingmemoryfromtheperspectiveofthewritersandreaders,aswellaswhytheyconsidersuchmemorynecessary,whatitconsistsof,whomorwhatitserves,andwhatdemandsitmustmeet.Forthemostpart,thesearepersonalviewsandassessments.Iwouldliketothankallthoseinvolved.Iwishyouathought-provokingread!

Yours,DagmarEnkelmann

1  Weiss, Peter, „Laokoon oder Über die Grenzen der Sprache“, In Gegen-sätzen denken: Ein Lesebuch, Frankfurt am Main: 1986, p. 217. 

INTRODUCTION

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Asof autumn2019, theRosa-Luxem-burg-Stiftung(RLS)hadexistedfor29years,initiallyasanassociationforcriticalsocialanalysisandpoliticaleducation,andsince1999underthismainname.1TheRLSbeganreceivingpublicfundingin1999,andtheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism(ADS)beganitswork.Thenameitselfisstrikingandprogrammaticfortworeasons.First,formanyyearsitwastheonlyexplicitreferencethatthevariousstructuralunitsoftheRLShadtothedemocratic-socialistgroundswell

ofwhichtheRLSisapart;agroundswellinthesamewaythelandmarkrulingoftheFederalConstitutionalCourtin1986formedacentralpillarofthepoliticalinstitute.ItisnocoincidencethatthepartyaffiliatedwiththeRLSwascalledthePartyofDemocraticSocialism(PDS).ItwasnotuntiltheHistor-icalCentreforDemocraticSocialismwasfoundedinJanuary2017thatthedirectref-erencetodemocraticsocialismwastakenupagainclearlyinorganizationalpolicy.Thisnewdepartmentbroughtthearchiveandli-brarydepartmenttogetherwithanumberofothercolleagueswhohadworkedwithintheRLSonRosaLuxemburgandherleft-wingsocialistenvironment,aswellasonvari-oushistoricaltopics.Thenameofthenewdepartmentwasjointlyproposedbytheemployeesandapprovedbytheexecutiveboard.Thenameconsciouslyrefersbothtothearchive’stwentyyearsofworkandtothebasicpoliticaltenetsoftheRLS.Ontheotherhand,thename“ArchivesforDemocraticSocialism”wasintendedtomakeclearthatthetimeswhencertainleft-winggroupsorpartiescouldclaimtobethesolerepresent-ativesofatendencyshouldhavebeenoverby1999.Democraticsocialistmovements,organizations,andpeopleassociatedwiththemhaveadiversetraditionallineage;itwouldbepresumptuoustoclaimonlyonesiteforthem,bothpoliticallyandinarchivalrecords.ThisstartingpointoftheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismpointsfarbeyondtheimmediatearchivalworktotheorienta-tionoftheentireRLS;toapluralleft,whosemostimportantreferencepointisthepartyDieLinke,butwhichalsoincludesmanyotheractorsandfigures.Thisdiversityisin-creasinglyreflectedintheareasofcollectionoftheRLSarchive,whichnowalsoincludetherecordsoforganizations,groups,andin-

The Value of Breathing Deeply 20YearsoftheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism

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dividualswhocomefromtheWestGermanor,since1990,thepan-Germansocialleft.Tothisend,ourarchivehasbeenmodifiedovertheyearstoincludematerialsfromabroadertimeperiod:thearchivecollectionsforDieLinke,orpreviouslythePDSandlatertheLabourandSocialJustice–TheElectoralAlternative(WASG),begininDecember1989withthetransitionfromtheSocialistUnityPartyofGermany(SED)totheSED-PDStothePDS.TheRLSwasnevertaskedwithcollectingtheholdingsoftheSED;in-steadthesearestoredandaccessibleintheFoundationArchiveofPoliticalPartiesandMassOrganisationsoftheGDR(SAPMO)intheFederalArchives.2FortheRLSanditsarchive,thetransitionfromtheSEDtothePDSalsoservesasapo-liticalstartingpoint.ThatthePDShasrootsintheSEDcannotandshouldnotbedenied,butthePDSandlaterDieLinkerepresentabreakwithStalinismandanauthoritarianstate-socialistperspective.ThedocumentsheldinthecollectionsoftheRLSarchivesunmistakablyreflectthisbreak,forexampleintheminutesandothermaterialsfromtheworkofthePDSFederalExecutiveBoardduringtheperiodfromDecember1989toJanuary1993,whenGregorGysiwaspartychairman.3EversincetheRLSwasfounded,thedebateonstatesocialismhasbeenthe-matizedextensivelyinnumerouspublica-tionsandevents.4Inthiscontext,thedebateonStalinism,whichrepresentsareductiveyetconceptuallyjustifiableplaceholderforthepoliticsofthetime,wasofcentralim-portanceforboththeRLSandthePDS.Ontheonehand,itwasanecessary,self-crit-ical,andpainfulexaminationofwhythesocialistmovementhadinmanycasesde-velopedinanundemocratic,evendeeplyanti-democraticmanner,whichnecessarily

includesrememberingthevictimsofStalin-istrule.Ontheotherhand,itwasnecessarytore-formulateasocialistapproach,evenafterthefailureofSoviet-stylesocialismandundertheconditionsofthesupposedlastingsuccessofaliberalandcapitalistorderinthe1990s.TheRLSoftodayowesmuchtothisforesightandthetwo-prongedapproachre-quiredtodevelopit.WhentheRLScameintoexistencein1990,nobodywascertainthatsocialismwouldagainbecomedemocraticandexcitingintheforeseeablefuture,ratherthanremain-inghistoricallyburdenedandold-fashioned.WhentheRLSarchivewasfoundedin1999,militantanticommunismandthebour-geois-capitalistexuberanceofvictoryhadlostsomeofitsappeal,butarenaissanceofdemocratic-socialistthinkingstillseemedinconceivableatthetime.ThedefeatofthePDSinthe2002federalelectionsalsohadadirectimpactonthearchive’sfinancialsitu-ation,sinceitreceivedfundingfromtheAd-ministrationoftheGermanBundestag—asdidthearchivesofallthepoliticalfounda-tionsuntil2008.Sincethen,thearchive’sworkhasbeenfinancedbytheFederalMin-istryoftheInterior’sglobalfundsforpoliticalfoundations.Whatwasdebatableaboveallwaswhetherademocratic-socialistpartycouldbepermanentlyestablishedintheFederalRepublicofGermany.ThearchivalworkoftheRLSnonethelesscontinued,al-beitunderconsiderablymoredifficultcondi-tionsintermsofpersonnelandfinances,sothatfrom2005onwards,withthere-entryin2007ofwhatwouldlaterbecomeDieLinke,theRLSanditsarchive,nowalsowithacol-lectionareafortheWASG,couldsecureitsfutureforthelongrun.

Deepbreathingisanessentialpartofwork-inginarchivesingeneralandofworking

INTRODUCTION

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intheRLSarchiveinparticular;itincludesavoidinggettingcaughtupintrendsandfashions,andenduring(oftenintheliteralsense)beingconsidereddustyandboring.Perseveranceandthecapacitytobreathedeeplywhilesortingthroughthearchivesmakeitpossibletoprocesscollectionsandthusalsoviewsandtopicsthatwillonedaybecomerelevantagain,whichof-tenhappens.Innowaydoesthisexcludenecessarymodernizations,suchasthosethatourarchiveandtheRLSasawholewillhavetoundergo—neitherintermsoftech-nologicalchangesinthebasisandmeansofourwork(akeyterminthisregardisdigitallong-termarchiving),norintermsoftherequirementsofusers.Inthisrespect,archivalworkintheRLSisalsobeingmod-ernizedconsiderablywithoutcompromis-ingitsessentialqualitiesofpermanence,thoroughness,andsystematicity.Inthebestpossiblesense,thearchivalworkrep-resentsastubborndecelerationinphasesofconstantoverheatingandover-acceler-ation,arenunciationofhecticadjustmentstofast-movingtrendsand,aboveall,asolidfoundationforscientificwork.AsanhistorianthisissomethingIhavecometodevelopaparticularappreciationfor.Ofcourse,asinglesourcedoesnotchangeanoverallpicture;theappearanceofanewdocumentdoesnotnecessarily“rewritehistory”,asjournalistsliketosensationallydeclare,becausedocumentsconstituteonlyonepartofanoverallview.Butwith-outthem,historicalworkandourcapacitytoexplaincurrentdevelopmentswouldbeprimarilyandoverlydefinedbytherealmofthepurelysubjective.Althougharchivesmayappearunspectacular,theyformaverytoughlineofdefenceagainstfakenewsand“alternativefacts”.

Asapubliclyfundedbutnon-governmentalinstitution,theRLSarchiveisguidedbytheprinciplesoftheruleoflawandtranspar-ency.Atthesametime,ourarchiveiscom-mittedtotheconcernsofthosewhoplaceagreatdealoftrustinusbymakingtheirmaterialsavailabletous.WeconsiderthearchivalworkoftheRLStobeindependentintworespects:itisconductedindependentofstateorgovernmentalaction,becauseourarchiveservessociety’ssurginginter-estindemocratic-socialistpolitics.AgreatstrengthofthefederalismthatisguaranteedbytheGermanConstitutionandthepoliticaltraditionoftheFederalRepublicofGermanyisthatarchivesremainpubliclyaccessibletomanysectorsofsociety,notjustonana-tionalstate.ThearchiveoftheRLSisalsoin-dependentbecauseitmakesitsdocumentsavailabletothepublicandtherebyaimstofacilitateseriousresearch.Manydedicatedarchivistshavehelpedbuildupandshapeourarchiveoverthepast20years.Spe-cialthanksareduetoJochenWeichold,afoundingmemberoftheRLS,temporarymemberoftheexecutiveboard,andheadofthearchiveandlibrarydepartmentuntil2013,aswellasChristineGohsmann,whohashelpedtobuilduptheADSsince1999andthenleditfrom2013to2016.Themem-bersoftheexecutiveboardandespeciallyitsexecutivecommitteein1999,EvelinWit-tich,LutzBrangsch,andMichaelBriealsodeserveanhonourablemention,sincetheymadeitpossibletocreatethearchivestruc-ture.Weconsiderthisarchivalworktobeamongoursevenessentialfunctions.5Itispreciselythistask,whichmayseemunimpressivetosome,thatclearlyillustrateswhypoliticalinstitutessuchastheRLSareestablishedforthelongtermandwhytheyseekto

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andneedtoworkbeyondthepoliticsandcommotionofeverydaylife.Bearingthisinmind,20yearsisnotalongtimeforanar-chive.Thefoundationshavebeenlaidandthereismorethanenoughworktobedoneintheyearsahead.In2020,theRosa-Lux-emburg-Stiftungmovedmostofitsorgan-izationalunitsandstafftoitsnewdomicileonthePariserKommuneStraßeintheBerlindistrictofFriedrichshain-Kreuzberg.ThismeansthatinfuturethearchivewillalsobecomeevenmorevisibletothosewhoareinterestedintheRLSandincreasinglyinademocratic-socialistperspective,andwhoshouldbefamiliarwithitsfoundationsandsources.

1  On this, see “Ich lebe am fröhlichsten im Sturm”. 25 Jahre Rosa-Lu-xemburg-Stiftung: Gesellschaftsanalyse und politische Bildung, edited by Enkelmann, Dagmar and Weis, Florian: Hamburg, 2015.  2  See the collec-tion overview of the Federal Archives and the BStU Archives, accessed 29 October 2019, at: www.argus.bstu.bundesarchiv.de/Bestaendeuebersicht/index.htm?kid=2A13F- C86229C4892A97DC68C846C5A13.  3  See ADS, collection “Parteivorstand der PDS – Die Ära Gysi (1989 bis 1993)”.  4  See, for example, Nakath, Detlef, “Antistalinismus, Zeitgeschichte und Pluralität”, Ich lebe am fröhlichsten im Sturm, edited by Enkelmann and Weis, 2015, p. 42; Schütrumpf, Jörn, “Den Augiasstall ausmisten – Wilfriede Otto”, ibid., p. 178; Vietze, Heinz, “Bruch mit der Schönfärberei – Michael Schumann”, ibid, p. 179.  5  Das politische Selbstverständnis der Stiftung und ihre Funktionen, 2018, p. 6: “Our tasks can be roughly summarized in seven points (which are usually also named in the grant decisions): critical social analysis, political education, political advice and support, international dialogue work, net-working and partner work, scholarships for gifted individuals, and archival work. A business or organization will usually dedicate itself to performing one or two of these tasks. One of the special features of the RLS is that it brings these components together; no other organization in the fields of political education, development cooperation, or in scholarships for studies combines all of these tasks—only the political foundations.” [Organization Manual of the RLS]

INTRODUCTION

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TheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung’sarchivewasfoundedin1999,whichwasaturbulentyearfortheRLSasawhole.ThecontentandconceptualorientationoftheRLSwassoli-difiedwhileallitsstructureswerestillbeingbuilt,includingtherecruitmentandhiringofcolleagues,andoperationscontinuedtogrowrapidlythroughoutthisprocess.Theexecutiveboardmetonaregularbasis.Twogeneralassemblieswereheldinthefirsthalfof1999—oneon26Februaryandoneon25June—inwhichtheshapeoffuturede-

velopmentswasdiscussedanddetermined.Bothgeneralassembliesledtoinspiratio-naldiscussionsthatledtodecisionsbeingmaderegardingthenameofthefoundation,amongotherthings.On25June,thenameRosaLuxemburgwaschosen.TherewasaprojectgroupcalledBuildingtheRLS,whichwascomposedofvariousworkinggroupsdedicatedtospecifictopics,includingpoliticaleducationwork,socialanalysisinthealternativefuturecommis-sion,workabroad,workintheWest,scho-larships,thetransferofthemagazine Utopie kreativtotheRLS,andalsotheestablish-mentofanarchiveandalibrary.Theresultsofthedeliberationsfromalltheseworkingcontextshadtobebroughttogether,discus-sed,anddecidedoninatransparentmannerinthegeneralassembly.JochenWeichold,foundingmemberoftheRLS,long-standingboardmember,andmemberoftheexecutivecommittee,tookresponsibilityforthedevelopmentofthearchiveandlibrary.Wequicklydefinedpreciselywhatcomponentsaprospectiveleft-wingmemorywouldneed:thearchi-vesofthePDSmembersoftheGermanBundestag,butalsothoseofthelastVolks-kammer(People’sParliament)oftheGDR,andtheestatesofimportantindividualswhoformpartofthepoliticalleftinallitsdiversity.Thearchivesoftheinstituteitselfwouldalsobeneeded:thoseoftheAsso-ciationforCriticalSocialAnalysisandPoli-ticalEducation,which,asof1999,becametheRosa-Luxemburg-StiftungInstituteforCriticalSocialAnalysis.Thelibrary’scol-lectionareaswereintendedtoreflectthefieldsofactivityoftheRLSanditsregionalassociations,whichalsoincludesliteratureontheRLS’seponym.Inadditiontothis,manybookdonationswerereceived,espe-

Founding Moments

MemoriesfromthefoundingoftheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism

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ciallyofGDRliterature,butalsoentirepri-vatelibraries—thisposedquiteachallenge,whichourcolleaguesmanagedtohandlecalmly.Thegeneralmoodduringthisex-citingtimewascharacterizedbythejoyofbeinginvolvedinthedevelopmentofthisfoundation,ofbeingabletocontribute,andofbreakingnewgroundwithlike-mindedpeople.Intensedebatesoverdifferencesofopinionwereanessentialpartofthis.Buildingthearchivewasnowamatterofacquiringeligiblearchivalmaterials.Thisdidnothappenonitsown,sincethemembersofBundestagwhowereaskedtoprovidetheirdocumentssometimeshadtobecon-vincedthattheirfilesfromtheirworkintheBundestagwereimportantforaleftistme-moryandthatthiswasthearchiveinwhichtheybelonged.Theincomingarchivalmate-rialswereimmediatelyexaminedtoascer-tainhowmuchspacetheywouldtakeupinmetres,inordertocomplywiththelegalconditionsforsubsidies.JochenWeicholdmadesurethatwewereconstantlyuptodateontheserequirements.Choosingthearchivesoftwarewasanimportantdecisionwithlong-termeffects.SeveralproductsweretesteduntilthedecisionwasmadeinfavourofAUGIAS-Archiv,whichprovedtobeveryusefulfortheneedsofourarchive.OnceAUGIAS-Bibliowasacquiredforthelibrary,thearchivalworkbeganwithprepa-ringthefirstfindingaids.AsIrecall,JochenWeicholdhadtoexplainwhatafindingaidwastoeverysinglecommitteeintheRLS:theexecutiveboard,themanagement,theboardoftrustees,theCouncilofRegionalFoundations,thedifferentdepartmentsoftheRLS,theinitialdiscussiongroups,andworkingcontextsbeyondtheRLSitselfallneededclarification.Thefirstfindingaidthatcouldbeproudlypresentedtookaccount

ofPDSdeputiesofthefinalVolkskammeroftheGDR.TheestablishmentoftheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungprovokedconsidera-blepublicinterest.Therewasagreatneedforinformationandthedesiretoexchangeviewpoints,especiallyintheaffiliatedpartywithitsvariousstructures.Thisalsoappliedtothenascentarchive.On19November1998,ameetingwasconductedbetweentheCentralHistoricalCommissionandthePDSCommunicationandInformationCentre,inwhichtherelationshipbetweenthehistoricalarchiveofthePDSandtheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung’sArchivesforDemocraticSocialismwasdiscussed.Howshouldthearchivesofthestateparliamen-tarygroupsbehandled,orsignificantesta-tesfromdistrictorganizations?HowshouldmaterialsfromtheRLSarchivesbepublis-hed,howcouldthearchivists’professionaltrainingbecarriedoutandwhatnewacqui-sitionscouldbeconsidered?On26August1998,aconferencewasconductedinvolvingalltheregionalbran-chesoftheRLS.TheconferencebecameamainreferencepointfortheRLS,andbecameknownasthePotsdamerKonsens(PotsdamConsensus);init,wedecidedonfundamentalquestionsofcooperation—thematicfocalpoints,divisionoflabour,sharedinformation,and,ofcourse,finan-ces.Thearchiveandthelibrarywerealsotopicsofdiscussion.Thismeeting,whichwasbynomeansfreeofconflict,formedthedecisivebasisforsurvivingeventhemostdifficultyearswithasenseofunityandsolidarity,suchasthosethatfollowed2002,whenouraffiliatedpartyonlyhadtwomembersintheBundestag,whichledtofundingcutsforus.ThisprocesswoulddeterminetheatmosphereintheRLSforyearstocome.

INTRODUCTION

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Itnowhadtobemadeconvincinglycleartothefundingagencythatwewereinapositiontobuildupthearchiveandwerethereforealsoeligibletoapplyforfunding.DiscussionsonthistopictookplaceinBonnon6May1999.Theapplicationtoreceivefundingforthepreparationandpreservationofcontemporaryarchivalmaterialswassub-mittedinMay1999,inorderforthefundstobedistributedinAugust,atthesametimeasthefirstgeneralgrants.Arequestforthereleaseoffundshadtobesubmittedtothebudgetcommitteetogetherwiththegene-ralgrantsfromtheFederalMinistryoftheInterior.Anothertopicwasofcoursetheproperstorageofthearchives.WhenthefirststaffmemberswerehiredinAugust1999,someofthemsatattrestletablestheyhadbroughtthemselvesuntiltheofficefurniturewasde-livered.OneofthehighlightsoffurnishingtheRLSwasthedeliveryandinstallationoftheshelvingsystemforthearchive.Wemarvelledatthemobileshelvingunitsandhadthesystemofstoringthearchivaldo-cumentsexplainedtous.Nowgroupsthatvisitedthearchiveswerealsoabletogainavividimpressionofthegrowing“left-wingmemory”.TheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismisalsoarepositoryofknowledgeforthede-velopmentofleft-wingpoliticaleducationworknationwideandthehistoryofallde-partmentsoftheRLS:theprojectgroup(whichlaterbecametheInstitutefor)CriticalSocialAnalysis,thescholarshipdepartment,theworkabroad,andthevariousactsofco-operationwithsocialpartners.Justliketherepresentatives,employeesoftheRLSalsohadtobeconvincedoftheimportanceofsubmittingtheirdocumentstothearchive.Plansforthefilesweredrawnupandgra-

duallyworkingmaterialswerereceivedfromtheRLS’sdifferentdepartments.SuchisthebreadthofdocumentationthatahistoryoftheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungcouldonedaybewrittenfromthisarchive.In1999,tenyearshadpassedsincetheseriousso-cietalshiftsof1989,whichtheRLSnatur-allythematizedinitswork,forexampleintheHerbststürmeevent.ThedevelopmentsinEasternEuropewerealsoanimportanttopic,aswerefeminismandgenderequa-lity,technologyandsociety,andthestudyofWesternmarxistsandsocialscientists.Sincetheverybeginning,theRLShasex-aminedthecausesofthefailureofactuallyexistingsocialism,withtheroleofcultureasanindispensablecomponentofeducationplayingafundamentalroleinalloftheseprojects.Severalmeetingswereconduc-tedwithculturalworkersandartistswhoexpressedanextraordinarilyactiveinterestinhelpingtoestablishtheRLS.Thearchi-vingofculturalassetsandartisticworksandwhattheRLScouldcontributetothiswasalsoaddressed.Althoughthiswasonlypos-sibletoalimitedextent,afewworksfoundtheirwayintothearchive.Everygenerationdesirestobreaknewgroundintermsofsocialdevelopment,nomatterwhatthefield—beitscience,tech-nology,education,orpolitics.However,thiscanonlybesuccessfullyachievediftheexperiences,mistakes,successes,andcon-flictsofpreviousgenerationsarerespect-fullytakenintoaccount.Archivesas“memory”andlibrariesas“re-positoriesofknowledge”areindispensableforthecreationofnewknowledge.Alotofinterestinginformationisstillpreservedinarchivesandiswaitingtobediscovered.Incidentally,thisisonlycompletelypossibleduringtimesofpeace.

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TheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismpro-videsboththeGermanleftandtheRosa-Lu-xemburg-Stiftungwiththeopportunitytobringtheirownrealityandperspectiveintodialoguewithhistoricalexperiences.

INTRODUCTION

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TWENTY-YEAR ARCHIVES OF THE ROSA-LUXEMBURG-STIFTUNG

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Working-classchildrenarenotbornwithac-cesstobooks.TherewerenobooksinthehouseIgrewupin,butasachild,Iquicklybecameabookwormnonetheless.AnyonewhogrowsupinasmallSwabianvillagehaslimitedaccesstoleft-winghistory.Withoutaccesstotheexperiencesofothers,wehadtoorganizeourselves.First,wedidthisinthevillage,theninWeilderStadt,wherewebuiltaself-organizedyouthcentretogether.Today,thememoryofouryouthactivitieshardlyextendsbeyondthoseofuswhoare

stillpoliticallyactive.Butwhatisperhapsmoreimportantisthefactthattheyouthcentrestillexiststoday.Theleft-wingmem-orystartedoutsmall,butthesmallleft-wingstruggleshaveendedinvictories.Onceavictoryisachieved,itiseasytoforgetthatitwaswon.Thepolitical-historicalmemoryalsofunctionsasakindofDIYguide.

LONG LINESItwastheScoutmovement,ofallthings,thatputmeintouchwiththebroaderhis-toryoftheleft.Atthattime,theBundderPfadfinderinnenundPfadfinder(GermanAssociationofGuidesandScouts,BdP)wasstronglyinfluencedbyyoungstudentsengagedinthemovementsandprotestsof1968.WereadMarxandmanyotherclassicstogether.Withouttheseleft-wingScouts,IwouldhavebeenlesslikelytocomeintocontactwithMarxistideaswhilelivingintheSwabianprovince.Everygen-erationmustre-evaluatewhatisactuallyworthyofremembranceandwhatwillbepassedon;thisappliesabovealltopoliticalmovementsandtheireconomies.Icameintocontactwiththeorganizedla-bourmovementbywayoftheunionandtheformercomradesfromtheCommunistPartyofGermany(Opposition)(KPO).Largeleft-wingorganizationsliketheSPD,theCom-munistPartyofGermany(KPD),andtheirrespectivetradeunionsusuallyhavetheirownhistoryoforganization.Whichpartofthearchivesisopenedandwhichwritingsarereadisoftenamatterofdispute.ThesedisputescanbegleanedinthehistoryoftheKPO.Inthe1920s,theKPOwasthestrong-estorganizedmovementwithintheKPD.ItsmembersincludedformerKPDchairmanHeinrichBrandler,andAugustThalheimer,oneofthegreatestcommunisttheorists.

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Thalheimerhadwarnedoftheimminentfascisttakeoverofpowerasearlyas1928,anddevelopedatheoryoffascismthatisstillworthreadingtoday.TheKPOdemandedearlyonthattheKPDbuildaunitedfrontagainstfascism.ItconsequentlycriticizedtheKPD’sdisastroussocial-fascismthesisaswellasthe(unsuccessful)buildingoftheRevolutionaryUnionOpposition(RGO),itsowntradeunions(RGO),andfoughtagainsttheStalinizationoftheKPD.Historywouldhavebeenmuchdifferentiftheirlinehadprevailed.Historycannolongerbechanged,butwecanlearnfromthemistakesofourpredecessors.Importantfiguresofpost-warhistory,suchasWolfgangAbendroth,WilliBleicher,orTheodorBergmann,weremem-bersoftheKPO.Whatsoundslikemeretheorycomestolifewhenyouimaginetheimpressionthatphysicalanti-fascistresistancefightersmadeonyoungleftistsinthe1960sand1970s.MyfriendTheodorBergmann,whodiedtwoyearsagoattheageof101,wasoneofthosepeople.NationalSocialismde-stroyedmuchoftheactivememoryoftheGermanleft,alongwithitsmembersandorganizations.Thismadeitallthemoreim-portanttohavetheseoldtraditionstoldbyTheodorBergmannorWilliBleicher,soasnottohavetostartagainfromscratch.Evenforme,someofthedebatesofthe1920swerebroughtbacktolifeandourdisagree-mentsthus(again)becamepartofalargerhistoryoftheleft.Especiallyasdifferentpoliticaltendenciescameintoconflictwitheachother,itwasimportanttoshedlightontheseintermediatepositionsbetweensocialdemocracyandtheMarxist-Leninisttradition:forme,democracyandsocialismbelongtogether.Itisnotalwaysclearwhichtraditionswillbecomeimportantagaininfu-

ture,whichiswhyitissoimportantforustodevelopacollectivememoryoftheleftinitsentirety.Ifawitnesstoapasteventortimeperiodisdead,itisoftenonlyarchivesthatwillbeabletobringtheirthoughtsbacktolife.

THE SECOND BREAK IN 1990Theneoliberalerabeganasearlyasthe1980s.Theentireleftwasplungedintoacrisisalmostworldwide,andunionswerealsoforcedontothedefensive.Thehistoryofdefeatsneedstoberecountedpreciselybecausehistoryisusuallytoldfromtheper-spectiveofthevictors.Thosewhofailtolearnfrompastmistakeswillnevermakeprogress.Butevenintheworstoftimes,thereisalwayshopeandresistance.ThePDSemergedduringthedifficultiesofthe1990s.Unionswerestillabletoachievesomesuccesseshereandthere,despitethefactthattheywereshrinkingnationwide.Neoliberalismneverceasedtobecontrover-sial,eveninitsheyday.ThePDSwasavoiceforthedisenfranchisedintheneoliberalexperimentallaboratoryofEastGermany.Thepeacemovementexperiencedanenor-mousinfluxintheearly1980sandagainintheearly1990sasitmobilizedagainstrear-mamentandwar.In1997,thetradeunionswereabletowinsickleaveinanimportantstruggle.Despitethis,thedeindustrializa-tionofentireregions,especiallyduetopolit-icalturmoilintheEast,aswellastheration-alization,globalization,andrestructuringoftheeconomyleftatremendoustrailofsocialdevastationinitswakeinboththeEastandtheWest.Theunionscontinuetostrugglewithrestructuringtheworkplacetothisday.Butnoteverythinghasgonedownhill:newindustriesweresuccessfullyopenedupintheservicesector,andthescopeofac-

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torsintheunionmovementhasexpanded,includingstrikesintheretailsector,incivilservice,theeducationandhealthcaresec-tors,andevenatAmazon;allofthesehavedevelopednewformsofstrikesandhavehadsuccessesincollectivebargainingpro-cesses.Thiswaveofinnovatestrikeactionshasprovidedsomeglimmerofhope,justastheanti-globalizationmovementdidatthebeginningofthe2000s.

APPRECIATION OF COLLECTIVE MEMORYRosaLuxemburgoncearguedthatthemasseslearnprimarilyinlargemovements.TheprotestsagainstHartzIVandAgenda2010 turned something that soundedold-fashionedintoareality.Asaunionmem-berandlaterasaco-founderofWASG,Itookpartinthesehugesocialprotestsfromtheverybeginning.ThedevastatingcutstosocialprogrammescarriedoutbytheSPDandTheGreensunderChancellorGerhardSchröderweremetwithimmenseresist-ance,whichenabledPDSandWASGtouniteandformDieLinke;asaresult,therehasbeenapan-GermanpartytotheleftoftheSPDrepresentedintheBundestagsince2005—somethingthatpreviouslyhadnothappenedsince1933.Thatwasanhistoricmoment.However,thisunificationshouldnotcauseustoforgetthemanydifferentsourcesandtraditionsofthispartyanditsmembers.Ourmemoryisasdiverseasourtraditions.Itispoliticalpartiesandtheirvariousaffili-atedorganizationsthatbearandtransmitthememoryofsocialmovementsbothpastandpresent.Theyformpartofthecollectivememoryoftheentireleft;theirdebates,theiractions,andtheirexperiencesareatreasurethatwesometimesunderestimate.Thevery

existenceofaleft-wingpartyhasthepoten-tialtoshiftsocialdiscourse,asaglanceatthecurrentsituationinAustriaorHungarypainfullydemonstrates.Itisimportantthatweallplayaroleinhelpingshapethesocialdebatesaboutourpast.Achievementssuchasthewelfarestate,peace,ordemocracyaretooeasilytakenforgranted.Butalmostallofoursocialanddemocraticachieve-mentshavebeentheresultofgrass-rootsstruggles.Theconservativesinparticularwouldlikeallofthistobeforgotten.

LEARNING AND FIGHTING PARTYDieLinkehasbeengreatlyrejuvenatedinrecentyears.Upheavalsintheworkplacepresentgreatchallengesforusandfortheunions.Whileonepartofsocietyisbe-comingmoreandmorehighlyqualified,theothersideisexperiencingacontinuingconsolidationofprecariousemploymentrelationshipsandconditions.AschairmanofDieLinke,Iconsiderconnectiveclasspoliticstobeamatteroflifeanddeath.Oneofthecentraltasksofleft-wingpoliticsistocountertheprecarization,exclusion,anddi-visionofthevariousgroupsofwage-earnerswithapraxisthatconnectstheirinterestsandthuspromotesclassconsciousness.Solidarityofthemanyagainsttheruleofthefew.Itisimportanttotakeaccountofthefactthattoday’sclassofworkersiscomprisedofahigherpercentageoffemaleandmigrantworkersandismoreprecari-ousthaneverbefore.Weshouldnolongerfixourgazeontheclassicalindustrialprole-tariat,butinsteadmustincreasinglydirectourattentiontonewoccupationalgroups,forexampleinthesocialandeducationalsectors,inhealthcareandnursing,intradeandlogistics.Climatechangemustbeun-

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derstoodasanexistentialclassissue.Socialjusticeandclimateprotectionaremutuallydependent.Beingapartofanactiveorganizingpartywasandstillisimportanttome.ItmakesmeproudthatDieLinkehasestablisheditselfasastrongcoalitionpartnerinalmostallrele-vantprotestmovements.Thishashelpedin-tegratethepartyintothesemovementsandintroducedpartsofthemovementsandtheiractiviststotheparty.Thematiccampaigns

aswellaspilotprojectsinvolvingorganizingandcanvassingdoortodoorinfocalcitydis-trictsarealsostartingtobearfruit.Thegoalistoremainanchoredinsociety;thisisacen-tralprerequisiteforchangingsociety.Learningfromhistorycanhelpusansweragreatmanyofourquestions.Thereisalongandricheco-socialistandanti-fascisttradi-tionthatmovementsforclimateprotectionandagainsttheriseoftherightcandrawfrom.

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Anessentialtaskofleft-wingpoliticsistobringupthepainfulsubjectofsocialinjus-tices,andasoundmemoryisneededforthis.Thisistrueforhard-wonvictories,aswellasformistakesanddefeats.Thatiswhyarchives,andespeciallytheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism(ADS),areindispen-sablefortheleft.Inadditiontomanyimpor-tantdocuments,thisarchivealsocontainstracesoftheemergenceoftheWestGer-manleft,whichhadbeenfragmentedpriortothecreationofthearchive.

InMarch2004,we,theinitiators,wroteinthecallfortheInitiativeforWorkandSocialJustice:“Thelastfewyears,butespeciallythepoliciesoftheSocialDemocrat-ledfederalgovernmentinrecentmonthshaveshownthattheSPDhasabandoneditsprin-ciples.Contrarytoitselectionpromisesof1998and2002,whichmadeitappeartobeanalternativetotheneoliberalpoliciesofthepreviousgovernments,ithasbecomethemainactorinimplementingthecutstosocialservicesandintheredistributionofwealthfromthebottomtothetop.Noneofusexpectedthatapartywithsucharichso-cialtraditionwouldmutateinsuchashorttimeintoapartythatblindlysupportsthechancellor,whosecurrentpoliticalgoalsnegatealmosteverythingthatthispartyhasrepresentedforoverahundredyears.”Thismighthelpthereaderunderstandwhywefoundedthisinitiativein2004—anopenallianceforthedefenceofourwelfarestateandforthejuststructuringofoursocialsystems—andwroteacallthathasgener-atedtensofthousandsofresponses,bothnationallyandinternationally.Thepublicap-pearedtohavebeenwaitingforit.Asaresult,thecallweputoutcontributedsignificantlytothesuccessesoftheleftthroughoutGermany.Itwasandis,asitwere,a“notepad”forthememoryoftheleft,butalsoforthatoftheSPDand,inthefuture,willprobablyalsoserveasanotepadforthememoryofTheGreens.TheinitiativeculminatedwiththefoundingoftheWASG(LabourandSocialJustice–TheElectoralAlternative)in2004,which,togetherwiththePDS,foundedDieLinkein2007.Thatwasandisasuccessstory.ForthefirsttimeinrecentGermanhistory,apartytotheleftoftheSPDhasbeenabletoformandestablishitselfnationwide.Awesternexpansionof

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thePDShadbeenattemptedseveraltimesbefore,butwasdoomedtofailbecauseofthedeep-seatedanti-communistsentimentinWestGermany.Theformationofatrulyleft-wingpartywasonlymadepossiblebytheSPD’sdeparturefromitsownhistoryanditsorientationtowardsthewelfarestate.ItisthereforesafetosaythatDieLinkechangedpolitics;neoliberalism’sthreaten-ingadvancewasstopped.Manynolongerconsidertheprivatizationofpublicproperty,thehealthcaresystem,orpensionstobeacure-allforsocialills.Thederegulationofthelabourmarketcouldbelargelysloweddownandpartiallyrevised;withoutDieLinketherewouldbenolegalminimumwage,althoughtheminimumwagethatexistsinGermanytodayisstillinsufficient.Thelefthasbeeneffective,evenattheEuro-peanlevel.Rarelyhavesomanysuccessesbeenachievedintheareasofemployment,socialpolicy,andconsumerprotectionashavebeenachievedintheEuropeanPar-liamentoverthelasttenyears—muchofwhichhasbeeninitiatedandbroadlysup-portedbytheleft.Butwearefarfromtheendoftheroad.Thepoliticsofthepastisstillhavinganimpacttoday.Precariousnesscontinuestospreadandimpoverishmentisgrowing.Power-fulforcesareatworkatanationalandEu-ropeanleveltopreventtheequalizationoflivingconditionstowardsamoresocialEu-rope.Speculationandrentprofiteeringareontherise,whilemilitarizationandrearma-mentincreasethethreatofwar.Digitaliza-tionandclimatechangepresenthazardsthatoverwhelmusandthreatenourveryexistence.Thereisaclearneedforastrongandconvincingleft-wingalternative.Today,DieLinkeisanimportantelementoftheGermanpartysystemandhasestab-

lisheditselfaboveallasasocio-politicalcor-rectionfactorwithinthepoliticallandscape.IthasachievedanumberofsuccessesthatwereunprecedentedinthehistoryofGer-many’spoliticalparties.Inorderforittocontinuetodoso,however,amoreoffen-siveline-upisnecessary.ThefutureofDieLinkewillbedeterminedlessbyitshumanresourcepoliciesthanbywhetheritprovestoleadpopularopinionatthefocalpointsofsocialconflict.Since2010,however,thehistoryofthisyoungpartyhasalsoincludedaphaseofstagnationcoupledwithbitterdefeatsinelections,steadilydecliningapprovalrat-ingsinpolls,andlossesamongitscorevoterstrata.Wecanonlyguesswhatcon-sequencesthishasfortheparty’sexternalpoliticalimageanditssocialanchoring.ThecorebrandingoftheWASGhasalwaysbeenidenticalwiththecoreprinciplesofDieLinke:workandsocialjustice.Neglectingtheseprincipleswouldhavenegativecon-sequencesfortheprogrammatic-strate-gicdevelopmentofDieLinke.TheWASGwasstrictlyorientedaroundimprovingtheworkingandlivingconditionsofwork-ers,pensioners,andtheunemployed,aswellaspopularizingalternatives.ThiswasastrategicresponsetotheimpositionsoftheAgenda2010,whichitselfwastheRed-Greenreactiontothecrisisresultingfromtheimplementationoffinancialcapitalism.Thisdecisiontoprioritizedefendingthewel-farestateispartofalargerdebateaboutDieLinke’strajectory.Thethreatenedcentremadeupofworkers(intheWest)wasintro-ducedtoMarx’sCapital,whichtheWASGbroughtintothenewlyformedDieLinke.Ifthishistoricalandpoliticalreferencepointdisappears,theapprovalandsupportforDieLinkewillalsodwindle.Thiswillhavenega-

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tiveconsequencesforitsmembershipbaseandabilitytomobilize.ThewidelylamentedexodusofactivetradeunionistsfromDieLinkehasnowreachedacriticalpoint,ashastheproportionoftradeunionmemberswhovoted.NobodywouldclaimthattheproblematicdevelopmentswearecurrentlyfacingareduetothedisappearanceoftheWASG.However,DieLinke’slossofappealcanbetracedbacktothedisappearanceofworkandsocialjusticefromitscorebranding.Aspreviouslyemphasizedbytheformerchair-manoftheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung,HeinzVietze,itisthereforeaworthwhileprojecttodedicateresourcestothesafeguardingofthehistoricalandpoliticalheritageofWASGasareservoirforthetraditionsofDieLinke.Thisprojectisnotanendinitself.ItisnotenoughtoplacethehistoryoftheWASGbesidethehistoryofthePDSandsimplyletbothtraditionsstandsidebysidewithoutofferinganyfurtherexplanation.DieLinkecanwinbytakingupthehistoryofthesetwooriginalpartiesandthuscreatingacommonhistoryofDieLinke.Thedebateaboutthedifferentrootsandtraditionsoftheleftena-blesaprocessinwhichdifferencesandsim-ilaritiesareworkedoutandcommonlinesoftraditionareidentified.Theinterviewswiththefoundinggener-ationofWASG,whicharealreadyinourarchive,helptopreservetheirlegacy.Buttheseinterviewsconstituteneitheradefin-itivepresentationofthehistoryofWASG,norananalysis.Instead,theypresentthesubjectiveviewsofthosewhofoundedthepartyandfolloweditscourseuntilDieLinkewasestablished;theinterviewsmayprovideimportantimpetusforfurtherexaminationofthehistoryofDieLinkeanditscontinueddevelopment.

TheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung’sArchivesforDemocraticSocialismwhichisrespon-siblefortheadministrationDieLinke’sarchi-valmaterial,hasalsotakenonthedifficulttaskofsystematizingWASG’savailablearchivalmaterial.Thearchivalmaterialsre-ceivedfromWASGhavebeencatalogued,buttherearestillgapsthatneedtobefilledin.Towhatextentthesegapscanbefilledbyprivatelyownedsourcematerialorthearchi-valmaterialofregionalbranchesremainstobeseen.Compilingfairlyclosedarchivalcol-lectionsonthehistoryofWASGandmakingthemaccessiblewouldbeaworthwhileaswellasdifficultandresource-intensivetask,whichisyettobecompleted.Sofar,thereisstillnoanalyticalandsystematizedap-proachtothehistoryofWASGwhichwouldacknowledgeandinvestigatethisformationasanindependentphenomenonwithinGer-many’spoliticalhistory.Finally,thedynamiccharacterofWASG’sbriefhistoryhasbarelybeenacknowl-edged.Theformationstartedasaleftistco-alitionmovementtoadvocatethewelfarestate,beforebecomingapartyinordertoruninelectioncampaigns;practicallyim-mediatelyafterbecomingaparty,itfellintoanewdynamicthateventuallyculminatedinitsowndissolution.Howthissequenceofextraordinaryeventsandchallengescouldbereconciledwiththerequirementsofbuildingapartyontheground,internalpartydemocracyandcommunication,andorganizationalstabilization,hasbeenvirtuallyunexamined.Itispreciselythisin-tertwiningofpartybuildingandbreathlesshastethatthearchivedinterviewsmakeex-plicitlyclear.Oneofthearchive’smajorgoalswouldbeachievedifitweretogeneratearenewedin-terestinthehistoryofDieLinkebycoming

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totermswiththispieceoftheparty’shistory.Thistaskisabsolutelyfundamental.Especiallytoday,itiscrucialthatweconjureupthismemoryonceagain,becausetheWASG’scoreprinciplesofmobilizationarestillrelevant.Itisstillaboutdefendingthesocialinterestsofthemajority.Itisstillaboutthecon-flictbetween“themupthere–usdownhere”;

inotherwords,itisaboutclassstruggle.Theconceptsofgoodworkandsocialjus-ticeareamongthesupportingpillarsofourprogramme.Toneglectthemwouldnotonlybetoabandonasubstantialpartoftheheritageofthelabourmovement,butalsodirectlycontradicttheimperativeto“learnfromhistory”.

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WhenIwasaskedatthebeginningof2018towriteorrathercompileahistoryofDieLinke’sCouncilofElders,oratleastsplintersofsuchahistory,Ididnotimmediatelysayyes.Rather,Icarriedoutpreliminaryre-searchonthefollowingaspects:CouldanyinformationabouttheÄltestenrat(CouncilofElders)anditspredecessorinthePDS,theRat der Alten,befoundonDieLinke’swebsite?WhatsourcesofinformationwereheldinthecollectiontitledParteivorstandderPDS–DieÄraGysi(PartyExecutiveof

thePDS–TheGysiEra,1989to1993)intheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism(ADS)?AbriefreferencewasmadeonDieLinke’swebsitetothefactthattheRat der Altenhadbeencreatedattheextraordinarypartycon-gressoftheSED/PDSinDecember1989.Inparticular,thissitecontainedallthestate-mentsandcommentariesthattheRat der Altenhadmadesince2002.ResearchinthefindingaidsforcollectionsonParteivor-standderPDS–DieÄraGysi(1989to1993)yieldedsixreferenceswithindividualdoc-uments.ArchivistJanRunkwitzusedthedeliverylistsfromthecollectionsoftheex-ecutiveofthePDSthathadnotyetbeencat-aloguedtodigupa“cleaned-up”fileoftheRat der Altenthatpromisedtospanthepe-riodfrom1993to1997,butonlycontaineddocumentsfrom1997.ThefilehadbeendeliveredbyHorstSiebeck,thelong-timesecretaryoftheRat der Alten,whopassedawayinJune2006.Iagreedtotakeontheassignmentinthehopeofcomingacrosssomemorerevealingdocumentsinthesec-retary’sofficeoftheCouncilofElders.Althoughthishopewasultimatelydashed,IfoundacopyofanarticlebyEdwinSchwert-nertitled“DemGrundkonsensderPDSverpflichtet.ZurGeschichtedes‘RatesderAlten’beimParteivorstand”(CommittedtotheBasicConsensusofthePDS:OntheHistoryofthe‘RatederAlten’inthePartyExecutiveCommittee)froma2003issueofthemembers’magazineDisputinaclearplasticsheet,alongwiththecurrentlistofCouncilofEldersmembersandtheircontactinformation.Thisarticlenotonlyprovidedabriefoutlineofthecouncil’shistory,butalsocontainedavaluableclueforfurtherwork,namelythatthestatementsandcommen-tariesoftheRat der AltenhadmostlybeenpublishedinthePDS-Pressedienst(press

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service).AperusalofthePDS-Pressedienst,whichispreservedbytheRosa-Luxem-burg-StiftunglibraryinassociationwiththeADS,fillssignificantgapsinthetransmis-sionofinformationfromthe1990s.Itcon-tainednotonlystatementsandcommen-tariesmadebythecouncil,butalsoshortreportsonthediscussionsconductedbytheRat der Alten,whichGeorgFehst,theeditorofthePDS-Pressedienstandmemberofthecouncil,observedandvividlytransmitted.EdwinSchwertnerisnotonlytheauthoroftheaforementionedarticle;hewasalsoamemberoftheRat der Altenfromasearlyasthebeginningof1991,andworkedfromthemid1990stothebeginningofthe2000sasaspokespersonforthecommittee.HealsoauthoredanillustratedchronicleofthePDSalongsideOtfriedArnold,HelmutZes-sin,andothers,whichcontainsinterestingfactsaboutthehistoryoftheRat der Alten.Havingbornewitnesstothistimeperiod,hewouldsurelyhavebeenafruitfulsourceofinformation,buthehadunfortunatelyal-readypassedawaybythetimethishistorywasbeingprocessed.IhardlyhadbetterluckresearchingMoritzMebel,whowasamemberoftheRat der Altenfrom1990onwardsandmanyyearslaterbecameaspokesperson.Heleftthecouncilattheendofthe1990sduetohisdisappointmentatitsonlysporadiccontactwiththeexecutiveboardandtheexecutivecommittee,whichmadethecouncil’sadvisoryfunctionseemobsolete.WhenIcalledMoritzMebelinthelatterhalfofMarch2018,heregretfullyin-formedmethathewasnotabletohelpme.Hesaidthathecouldnotrememberthede-tailsofthemanythingsthecouncilhaddis-cussedandhadthrownthedocumentsfromthecouncil’sactivitiesawayalongtimeago.HermannKlenner,ThomasFalkner,and

HeinzVietze,whohadalsolivedthroughthisperiodofhistory,weremorefruitfulsourcesformyendeavour.HermannKlenner,whohasbeenactiveinDieLinke’sCouncilofElderssince2008,providedinterestingin-sightsintothecommittee’sdiscussioncul-tureandintohowthestatementsandcom-mentariesfoundinthearchivehadbeenproduced.ThomasFalkner,whospentmanyyearsworkingonstrategyandthepartyleadership’sfoundationalissues,providedinsiderknowledgeaboutthefactthatthecouncil—andespeciallyHansModrow—werealwaysbusytendingtotheparty’sdevelopmentintheruralregionofBranden-burg.BoththecouncilandHansModrowhandledtopicsrangingfromcriticalandconstructivesupportfortheparticipationofDieLinkeinthegovernmenttotheworkofthecommitteeofinquiry“OncomingtotermswithhistoryandtheconsequencesoftheSEDdictatorshipandthetransitiontoademocraticconstitutionalstateinthestateofBrandenburg”,whichcoveredconstitu-tionalissuesandquestionsofrespectforEastGermanwaysoflife,aswellasananal-ysisofthereasonswhyDieLinkehadlostvotesintheBrandenburgstateelectionsinSeptember2014.Inaseriesoflengthytele-phoneconversationsconductedinApril2018,HeinzVietze,thelong-timedeputyorheadofthePDSparliamentarygroupintheBrandenburgstateparliament,toldmeaboutthebeginningsoftheRat der Alten, inwhichhehadbeeninvolved.Inordertoensurethenewcommitteewastrulyrepre-sentative,itwasnecessaryforitspersonnelcompositiontospanaparticularpolitical-so-cialspectrum.Inparticular,MichaelSchu-mann,memberofthefederalexecutivecommitteeofthePDS,wasdevotedtotheselectionandrecruitmentofthemembers

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oftheRat der Alten.HeinzVietzealsotookupthisrolein2007whenDieLinkeformeditsCouncilofElders,togetherwithThomasHändel,thetreasureroftheWASG.TheaforementionedillustratedchronicleofthePDSbyEdwinSchwertner,OtfriedAr-nold,HelmutZessin,andotherscontainedfactsabouttheRat der Alten,whichoffersastartingpointforelaboratingandvividlyexplainingthesefactswithdocumentsfromtheADS’sstilluntappedcollectionParteivor-standderPDS–DieÄraGysi(1989to1993).Thesedocumentspertain,forexample,tothemeetingofthePDSpartyleadershipon31January1994,whichdealtwiththecon-tinuationoftheactivitiesoftheRat der Alten,aswellasdocumentspertainingtothepartyexecutivecommittee’sdecisiontocontinuetheactivitiesofthecouncilinordertomakeuseoftheexperienceithadgathered;toex-pandthecouncilwithqualifiedfigures,andtoconductconsultationsontheparty’selec-tionplatform,onhistoricalproblems,andontheevaluationoftheresultsofstate,Euro-pean,andfederalelections.TocontinuemyresearchintotheRat der Alten,Ialsolookedintothebriefreferencementionedatthebeginningandre-checkedtheminutesofthedeliberationsfromthespecialpartyconferenceoftheSED/PDSinDecember1989,whichwerepublishedbyDietz-VerlaginBerlin.Theoriginaldoc-umentsfromthisconferenceareheldto-getherwiththecorrespondingshorthandnotesintheADS.OnDecember16,1989,WolfgangBerghofer,thendeputychairmanoftheparty,declaredonbehalfofthecon-ferenceleadershipthattheparty’sexecu-

tivecommitteehaddeemeditappropriateforpartychairmanGregorGysitoappointacouncilof“oldercomradeswithexperienceinthestruggle…toconsultwiththemonbasicquestionsoftheoryandpractice,ofpolitics,asnecessary”.Thosewithmoreexperienceweretoplayanadvisoryroletothepartychairman,whowasyounger.Berghoferthenexplainedwhichcomradeswouldbeaskedtoparticipateinthiscouncil.On12January1990,theSED/PDSparty’sexecutiveboardofficiallyconstitutedtheRat der Alten.Archivalmaterialsandotherwrittensourcesconstituteonething,asdoesquestioningpeoplewholivedthroughtheerainques-tion.Theother—nolessimportant—thingisformingone’sownopinion.ThisiswhyIseizedtheopportunitytoparticipateinameetingofDieLinke’sCouncilofElderson26April2018,wherethemembersofthecommitteeandpartychairsKatjaKippingandBerndRiexingerdiscussedprepara-tionsforDieLinke’sLeipzigPartyCongressinJune2018,andcriticallyexaminedtheworkofthepartyleadership.Iwasabletoincorporatesome“splinters”fromthisdis-cussionintothefinalversionoftheoutlineofthehistoryofDieLinke’sCouncilofElders,whichconfirmedHermannKlenner’sclaimthatthecouncilhadalwaysbeentotheleftoftheofficialpartyline.OriginallyconceivedasanadvisorybodytothepartychairmanandthepartyexecutiveboardofthePDS,theRat der Altenincreasinglymutatedintoanadmonisherofthepartyanditsleader-ship—afunctiontakenupinasimilarformbyDieLinke’sCouncilofElders.

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Inthepast,theoldfolderswouldhavetobeemptiedandlabelledwithacoversheetdetailingtheircontents.Thestackwouldbeboundwithnaturalwhitecordandtiedwithaspecialknotknownasanarchivist‘sknot.Thenthearchivistwouldbenotifiedandtheywouldpickupthefiles—tomysurprise,withgreatpleasure—andwouldstoretheminthebasement.Atsomepoint,theywouldbetransferredtotheRLS.Littlehaschangedinthisregardovertheyears:Thearchivistfromthattimehassinceretired,theoffices

ofthepartyheadquarterstakecareoftrans-ferringthefilestotheRLS,thefilefoldersremaincomplete,theknottingisnolongernecessary,andtheknowledgeofhowtotieanarchivist‘sknothasbecomeassuperflu-ousastheknowledgeofhowtochangeatypewriterribbon.Inthissense,archivingisviewedasaratherbureaucraticprocessfromthepointofviewofthepartyheadquarters.HowhappyIwastoempty80squaremetresofmybasementandtwootherroomsinonefellswoopwhentheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismpickedupmanymetresoffilesfrommeinthe1990s.Soonerorlateryourealizeyouneedtheshelfandstoragespace,andtheoldstuffsimplyhastogo.Butinadditiontothetechnicalaspectsofthework,thereisalsothepersonal,every-day-lifeaspect.Themostdifficultpartofarchivingisdecidingwhichfilesaresooldandsuperfluoustoone’severydayworkthattheycanbegivenaway;onlythatwhichisnolongerneededentersthearchive.AndiswhatIwanttogiveawayevenworthyofbe-ingarchived?ManyfilesthatIhavesubmittedtothear-chiveovertheyearsformpartofmypoliticallife:filesfromtheparty’sexecutiveboardintheearly1990s,theAGWestdocumentsofthe1990s,papersfromthefirstattemptsatmembershiprecruitmentandpoliticaledu-cation,filesdocumentingthepartyreformatthebeginningofthe2000s,thepartymerger,theminimumwagecampaign,andvariouscitizens’correspondenceduringtur-bulenttimes—mostofwhatisarchivedstillbearstracesofmypersonaluseandreflectswhatIconsideredwasimportanttodocu-ment.Ihavealwaysfounditdifficulttopartwiththemandhavehopedthatsomeonewouldbeabletousethem.Itisabitlikeyour

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favouriteclothesthatnolongerfit:itwouldbeashametothrowthemaway,buttheymightstillserveagoodpurposeinausedclothesstore.WhatwouldprospectivereadersdowiththefilesthatmycolleaguesandIdeliveredtotheofficeofthenationalpartyheadquarters?Dothecampaignmanagementdocumentsreallyreflectthedebateswehadaboutthepostercampaigns?Dothedocumentsoftheproposalcommitteesfromthepartycon-gressreflectthestrategicdifferences?Doesthestudyofseveralyearsofcorrespond-encewithcitizensallowustodrawconclu-sionsabouthowthecitizens’expectationsofthepartychanged?Myquestionsrevealscepticism.Whatdoothersseeinourfiles?ForthoseofusinDieLinke,howwehandlethefilesisinfluencedbytwopoliticaldimen-sions:dataprotectionandtheprocessingofhistory.Whiledataprotectionislargelyformallyregulatedandforpoliticalreasonsmustbeimplementedbyaleft-wingparty,thereisadilemmawhenitcomestodealingwithhistory,becauseexperiencehasshownusthataplethoraofdifferenthistoriescanbewrittenfromthesamefile.Insomecases,Iwasabletoexperiencefirst-handwhatitisliketolearnabouthistoryfrompartyfiles:inthe1990sIreadseveralfilesfromtheMinistryofStateSecurityintheGDR,inwhichtheSEDwasalsomen-tioned.LaterIreadSEDfilespertainingtotheirorganizationsintheWest.Surprisingly,filesfromtheSEDculturaladministrationturnedupafewyearsagointhebasementoftheKarlLiebknechtHouse.Fileshadbeenneatlycreatedforallthoseactiveinthecul-turalsectorintheGDR,whichdocumentedthemoreorlessunsavoury(onthepartofthegovernment)correspondencewithStephanHermlin,HeinerMüller,andChristaWolf.

Ihavelearnedthatsomefilesarewrittentoberecognizedinasystem,oraresimplyofspecialinterest.Ontheotherhand,manymattersarenotkeptonfile(forverydifferentreasons).Itisforthisreasonthatfilesalwaysrevealonlyonepartofthetruth.Knowingthismakesitdifficulttopublishfilesthatdealwithemotionalevents,visions,andcriticaldecisions,becausein30years,thefilesmighttellacompletelydifferentstorythantheoneIexperienced.Itisnolongerpossibletowriteaboutar-chivingwithouttalkingaboutdigitalization.Thisnotonlyconcernsthefactthatdigitalfileswillbehandedovertothearchive,butalsothatthesedaysanincrediblenum-beroffactscanbeaccessedonline,andmanyeventsaredocumentedonwebsitesandblogswithouttheirhavingbeenac-tivelyarchived.Google,socialmedia,andtheinternetoverallhaveeverything,knoweverything,andcanfindeverything.MyGooglesearchjustturnedup84,800,000resultsin0.36secondsfortheword“PDS”,54,900,000resultsin0.56secondsfor“DieLinke”,and3,750,000resultsin0.34sec-ondsforArchivesforDemocraticSocialism.Whowasit—Bisky,Gysi,Schumann,orBrie—thatmadetheapologyattheSEDspecialpartycongress?Howdidthemem-bersofthePDSMecklenburg-VorpommernstateassociationvoteinthestrikeballotforthemergerwiththeWASGandforthefoun-dationofDieLinke?Theanswerstoallofthesequestionsarelikelytobeavailableontheinternet.Ifthisisthecase,thenistherestillaneedforarchives?Thealmostinfiniteaccumulationoffactsontheinternetisatthesametimeanalmostinfiniteaccumulationof“alternative”facts.Forthisreasonalone,itisimportanttose-curefactsanddocumentsinamorereliable

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framework—aframeworkthatisofferedbyprofessionalarchives.Forexample,ifwelookatthehistoryoftheSEDthroughthelensofdocumentspertainingtotheearlyPDS,thenwewillwriteacompletelydiffer-entstorythananarticlewrittenonthesametopicforDie Welt.However,duetothealgo-rithmsofinternetmemory,thoseconduct-inginternetsearchesarefarmorelikelytofindthelatterthandocumentspertainingtopartyhistory.Itisthereforealsocrucialthatthefilesbestoredinasecure,trustworthyplace.ThatiswhyIamgladthattheRosa-Luxem-burg-Stiftung’sArchivesforDemocraticSocialismisaprofessionalarchivethaten-

surescarefulstorageandprocessingandisalignedwiththetraditionofengagingwithhistoryinacriticalmanner.Politicsisrealizedthroughtheactionsofthepeople,throughthespokenandwrittenword,andthroughthevisualizedmessage.Thesethreeformswereandremainthemostimportantformsofexpressionfor(left-wing)politics.Eventhoughmanypoliticiansnowlimittheirmessagesto280charactersonTwitterand140charactersonWhatsApp,themostim-portanttestimoniesarestilltexts,photos,andaudioandvisualrecordings.Preservingthem,preparingthem,andmakingthemavailabletofuturegenerationsasaformofmemoryisanindispensabletask.

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WhenIwasfirstelectedtotheGermanBun-destag,IwasgiftedathickbluenotebookinwhichtorecordeverythingIexperiencedandencountered,aslongasIfounditremar-kable.Thenotebookwasrecommendedtomeasamemoryaid.Severalyearslater,IwaselectedbytheBun-destagtotheBoardofTrusteesoftheFed-eralFoundationfortheReappraisaloftheSEDDictatorship.ThisfoundationdealswiththehistoryoftheGDR,butalsowitheventsintheoldFederalRepublicandsinceGer-

manreunification.Tofindoutmorepreciselywhattheywereworkingon,Iimmediatelymadeanappointmentwiththefoundation’sexecutivedirector.Myyoungestemployeeaccompaniedmetothemeeting,butIveryquicklygotthefeelingthatshehadlostallinterestinthemeeting.“Whatarethesetwooldwomeneventalkingabout?”shemusthaveaskedherself.Andindeed,shehadneverheardofmanyofthethingsthattheexecutivedirectorandIdiscussed.Shewasbornin1993,butIhadtoldhersomestorieshereandthere.Backinmyoffice,wewentoversomeofthestoriesagain.Along-timecompanionaskedaboutthebluenotebook.Itwasempty.Andsowebegantoreconstructdifferentmem-oriestogether.ThatishowmybookGottlose Type – meine unfrisierten Erinnerungenwasfinallywritten.Itwaspublishedin2015andcontained53episodesfrom25yearsofmypoliticalaction.Itwascheerful,surprising,andseriousallatthesametime.Thestoryofhowmy1998premiereintheBundestagcameaboutcanbereadinthesectiontitled“RotesAmpelmännchen”(Lit-tleRedTrafficLightMan).Thestorygoeslikethis:

“If someone had told me in 1990 that I would one day become a member of the Bundes-tag, and even its vice president, I would have told them they needed to see a doctor. In 1998, I did not want to run for the Bun-destag, and the thought did not occur to the party’s intellectual leaders either. They were looking for a celebrity politician who could defend Berlin’s Mitte-Prenzlauer Berg cons-tituency, which the unaffiliated author Stefan Heym had won over to the PDS in 1994. They thought about Elmar Schmähling, the former admiral who had become an icon of the West

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German peace movement. It seemed likely that he could gain popularity, especially in the trendy Prenzlauer Berg district.The plan had only one tiny catch. Elmar Schmähling owned several small businesses, which, for whatever reason, had now gone bankrupt. He was accused of criminal de-lay in filing for bankruptcy, which the media seized upon and transformed into a scandal. Their message was:‘PDS campaigns for white-collar criminals: Ineligible!’ Unfortunately there were not many options for remedying this constant bombardment by the tabloids and the public authorities.So Elmar Schmähling could no longer be counted on to defend the constituency. Did he still stand a chance of winning, and if so, who would run with him? Soon everything came down to me. Pau instead of Schmäh-ling. But what did the ‘big four’ of the PDS leadership think about all of this? There was a conference call and a vote—I was there for it. It was a close call, but I won three votes to two.Suddenly it was time to begin the elec-tion campaign. I had to hurry, as Wolfgang Thierse (SPD), Günter Nooke (CDU), Mari-anne Birthler (Coalition 90/The Greens), and Martin Matz (FDP) were weeks ahead of me. I was on the road from morning to night in an attempt to catch up. I could make whatever political statements I wanted; I hardly ever appeared in the media since my main com-petitors were simply more present. We went to extremes and quickly declared that the red Ampelmännchen from the GDR era was now the symbol of my campaign. However, we did not opt to use the one that tells peo-

ple to ‘stop’, but instead to use the one that is clearly sprinting to the left. I still remem-ber some insulting emails that accused me of trying to lure seniors into the middle of the road at the wrong time instead of protecting them from fast drivers. Anyway, we called for a press conference and lo and behold: almost all the relevant media outlets came, filmed, and wrote about my red Ampelmännchen. From that point on, I carried a few dozen Am-pelmännchen badges with me wherever I went. People gladly took them, and after two or three weeks they were starting to appear on the lapels of all kinds of people. Whoever saw them and knew about them, grinned: of course, vote for Petra Pau!Shortly before the finale, our PDS campaign manager at the time made another public speech. He unceremoniously announced the winner of the former Heym constitu-ency: it was me. It was the year in which the German song “Guildo hat euch lieb!” (Guildo loves you) was playing on every station as part of the Eurovision Song Contest. What came as an even greater surprise was the moment I won my first direct mandate with the Ampelmännchen on 27 September 1998. Small red things should never be un-derestimated.”

Inthemeantime—thatis,since2014—Ihavebeenwritingdownnewexperiencesastheyoccur.Mybluenotebookisnowblackandisgenerallycalledalaptop.Ofcourse,IhadalreadymadeuseoftheRosa-Luxem-burg-Stiftung’sarchivesasIwished,andIwillcontinuetodoso.Afterall,whatwearedealingwithisaleft-wingmemorythatneedstobenourishedandpropagated.

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“Youngpeoplearehomesickforthefuture.”ThisquotefromJean-PaulSartrecanbereconsideredintoday’scontext.Inmanycountriesaroundtheworld,(notonly)youngpeoplearetakingtothestreetsbecausetheyareafraidofwhatthefutureholds;becausetheyyearnforatimewhenpeoplelivedfreefromworry,beforeclimatechangeandthedestructionoftheenvironmentmadelifeonthisplanetintoalivinghell.Becausetheyyearnforasocietyinwhichtheycanputtheirskillstouse;asocietythattheycan

helpshape—withouthavingtoworryab-outbeingunemployed,endingupinpoorlypaidjobs,orwastingtheirtimeatworkperformingmeaninglesstasks.Theyyearnforagovernmentthatwillprovideafforda-blehousingandothernecessaryservicesacrosstheboard,insteadofprioritizingtheinterestsofmajorcorporations.

HOLDING THOSE RESPONSIBLE TO ACCOUNTWhyhasoursocietybeenonthewrongpathforsolong?Whoflippedtheswitchtoputitonthewrongtrack?Whoistobeheldaccountable—forplunderingtheearth’snaturalresourcesjustasmuchasforthemeagrepensionpaymentsthatkeeppeopleinpoverty,theexplodingrents,theinvest-mentbottlenecks,thepersonnelshortagesinhospitalsandagedcarefacilities,andforthemountinglevelsofsocialdivision?Isitevenpossibletoholdanyonepersonorcorporationaccountableforthis,orarewealljusttinywheelsinanonsensicalsystemthatdisallowsanykindoftangiblealterna-tive?Whatisclearisthatanyonewhoat-temptstoholdotherstoaccountmustalsoallowthemselvestobeheldaccountable.Isthatpossible?Despiteallthemistakesandwrongdoings,Ibelievethatitis.Justas,whenpeoplefromtheGDRhadtheirlivesturnedupsidedownafterGermany’sappar-entreunification,wesaidno:notolettingtheEastbecolonizedbytrustsandWestGermancorporations;notothemonetaryunionbetweenEastandWestGermany,whichledtodeindustrializationandmassunemploymentintheEast;andnotoaEu-ropeanmonetaryunion,whichwouldlaterdrivesomanycountriesintodebtcrises,aswellascontributetosocialdevastationandnationalism.

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WeprotestedagainstmilitaryinterventionsbytheGermanArmedForcesandwarnedthattheso-calledwaronterrorwouldonlybegetmoreterror.WewereupinarmsagainstAgenda2010,whichhasmutilatedourwelfarestateandbroughtusnothingbutlowwagesandpoverty-levelpensionschemes.Wehavecriticizedtheprivatiza-tions,socialcuts,andthederegulationofthemarkets,andfoughttoensurethatthepublicdoesnotinheritthefinanciallossesaccruedbyprivatebanks.Webroughtupthesepainfultopicswhenpoliticiansal-lowedthemselvestobeboughtoutbybigcorporations.Andmanyofushavefoughtforimprovementsforthepeoplethroughourunfalteringcommitment,havetakencareoftheproblemsofemployees,unem-ployedorsingleparents,wheremanyotherssimplylookedtheotherway.

RE-EVALUATING THE PASTItisalwaysimportanttoreappraisehistory,especiallyifwewanttofindadifferentwayoforganizingthefuture.Forexample,thisyeartheleft-wingparliamentarygrouponceagaindemandedtocreateacommitteetoinvestigatetheworkconductedbytheTreuhand.TheformerMinisterPresidentofBrandenburg,MatthiasPlatzeck,spokeofan“idiosyncraticatmosphere”whenrefer-ringtoEastGermany,asif“thegrievancesthathadaccumulated,especiallyduringtheupheavalsofthe1990s,werenowcom-ingtothesurfaceafteraperiodofdelay”.1Suchanatmospherecanbedangerous,butitcanalsocreateaclimateofopportunity.Lastyear,asimilaratmospherecouldbeobservedinFrance,whichdevelopedintoasurgeoffurydirectedat“thoseuptop”,andultimatelyculminatedintheyellowvestpopularuprising.Wehaveaspecial

responsibilityinsituationssuchasthese,inwhichpastgrievancesboiluptothesurface.Sometimes,sectionsofthepastneedtobere-evaluatedsothattheycanbeovercomeinareasonablemanner.Archivesareinval-uablewhenitcomestoperformingthistaskbecausetheysecureourpastforthepresentandthefuture.

AGAINST THE TIDEApoliticalparty’smemoryisshapedbytheexperiencesofallofitsmembers.Thepar-liamentarymemoryconsistsoftheexperi-encesofelectedmembersofparliament—andallthosewhoworkfortheminpersonalofficesorparliamentarygroups.Myown“parliamentarymemory”beginsinBrusselsandStrasbourg.From2004to2009Irepre-sentedthePDSintheEuropeanParliamentCommitteeonEconomicandMonetaryAf-fairs.Duetothefactthattherewasanover-whelmingconservativeandliberalmajorityonthiscommittee,Iwasnotabletohavemuchimpact.Themajorityoftherepresent-ativesinthecommitteewereconvincedthatfinancialmarketsworkbestwhentheyarenotsubjecttoanyrulesorlaws.Theybe-lievedinaneoliberalpolicyofcompetitionthatwouldprohibitstateaidandmakestra-tegicindustrialpolicyalmostimpossible.TheywereeitherconvincedthatapolicyintheinterestofbigEuropeancorporationswouldautomaticallybenefiteveryone—ortheyallowedthemselvestoberopedinbylobbygroupsadvocatingthispolicy.IrememberdiscussionswithJean-ClaudeTrichet,theECBpresidentatthetime,aboutthedangersthathadarisenforfinancialmar-ketsasaresultofmonetarypolicyandde-regulationpolicy,ordiscussionsaboutthecreationofanEU-widesystemofdepositin-suranceforbanks,whosebasicfunctioning

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couldnotbeagreedupon.Mostofthetime,Iwastheonlyoneintheentirecommitteetovoteagainstdraftdirectivesorreports.Itwasnotuntilthebigeconomiccrashof2007thatmanypeoplewokeup,atwhichpointeveryoneinthecommitteeagreedthatnobodycouldhaveforeseensuchacrisis.DisappointedaboutthelimitedinfluenceIhadintheCommitteeonEconomicandMonetaryAffairs,Itriedtoeducatethepub-licabouttheneoliberalEUprojectsandwincoalitionpartnersoutsideofparliament.Iinformedpeopleaboutthedangerousdraftdirectivesandprojects.Uponmyinvitation,ver.dileaderFrankBsirskewasabletoex-plaintotheEuropeanParliamentwhytheServicesintheInternalMarketDirective2006onthederegulationofservicesforemployeeswasnotacceptableandopenedthedoortowageandsocialdumping.Idonotknowhowmanyrepresentativeswereconvincedbyhisgoodarguments,butattheveryleast,thetransnationalprotestsdidnotgounnoticed,andatleastsomeaspectsofthishorribledirectivecouldbemitigated.

UNITED FOR A NEW STRENGTH“Withoutmemory,wewouldbenothing”,wroteEricKandl,aUSAmericanneurosci-entist,psychiatrist,physiologist,behav-iouralbiologist,andbiochemistwhowasforcedtofleefromtheNazisbecauseofhisJewishorigins.“Memoryisthebindingagentthatholdsourspirituallifetogether.”2Atthesametime,itconnectsuswithotherformsoflife,since,asKandldiscovered,certainlearningmechanismsrelatedtothefacultyofmemoryarethesameforallliv-ingbeings.Ourmemorydoesnotfunctionlikeanarchive,inwhicheventsareorgan-izedchronologically.Ourbrainisnotavesselthatisfilledpiecebypiecewithcontent.We

learnbecausefiresarekindledwithinusoraroundus.Thesefirescanbepainfulandde-structive,canfilluswithfearandterror—asisthecaseintimesofwarandcrisis,orinthefaceofenvironmentaldisasters.Theycanalsoenlightenus,warmus,giveushope.Eitherway,therearetimesandeventsthatleaveadeepimpressiononourmemoryandheraldchangeinourlives.Mylifewasshapedthiswayduringtheglobaleconomiccrisisthatbeganin2007,whichalsohap-penedtobewhenpeoplewithverydifferentbackgroundsfrombothEastandWestGer-manycametogetherinoneparty.Recourse togood traditionsmakesusstrong.Organizationsfrom50countriescametoDieLinke’sfoundingcongresson16June2007inthehopethatapeople’spartytotheleftoftheneoliberalSPDwouldforminGermany.Itwasapartycongresswithcharismaandwithmovingspeechesthatconveyedaspiritofoptimism.Atthattimewesetouttoachievegreatgoalsto-gether:torebuildthesocialstate,tofightfordemocracyandtheinterestsofthewageearningmajorityagainstaglobalizationdic-tatedbyfinance,toconnecttheecologicalquestionwiththesocialquestion,andtoputthequestionofpeaceontheagenda.Inthe2009federalelections,weachievedourbestresulttodatewithalmost12percentofthevotes.Twoyearslater,wesetourselvesaforward-lookingprogram,whichwascon-firmedinamembervotewith95.8percentofthevotes.Lessconcernforourselves,andmoreconcernforotherpeople’sproblems—thiswassomethingelsethatweaspiredtobackthen.Wedidnotalwayssucceedinlivinguptothisintheyearsthatfollowed.Wecertainlyneedlivelydebates,becauseitisonlybyexchangingviewpointsthatwewillbeabletofindtherightpathforward.In

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fact,ourmembersshouldbemuchmorein-volvedinthesedebates,becausethisistheonlywaywecanachievegoodresultsthatcanbecollectivelyrepresentedtotheout-sideworldandtherebybecomeeffective.

LEAFING THROUGH THE PAST“Thosewhowanttoreadthefuturemustleafthroughthepast”,wroteAndréMal-raux,who,likeSartre,wasanimportantFrenchauthorandpolitician.Astrueasthissentenceis,fromtoday’sperspectivewemustask:doesanybody“leaf”througharchivesanymorethesedays?Whatisdigi-talizationmakingofourcollectivememory?Willallofourmostimportantexperiencesandthoughtsbeobliterated?Willtheyatbestbeavailableintheformofprintedpa-per,butnotasfilesthatareaccessibletothebroaderpublic?AndwhatdoesthatmeanfortheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung’sArchivesforDemocraticSocialism?Doesitmakesensetolimitourselvestodocumentspro-ducedsince1989ifwewantthisleft-wing“memory”tobevaluable?

Notlongago,ayoungcomradeapproachedme.Hewasconcernedthatforward-lookingcontributionsbyleft-wingtheoristsfromtheperiodbefore1989wouldfallintocollec-tiveoblivionifwecouldnotworktogetherwithleft-wingpublishers(whooftendonothavethemoneyforthem)tosavethesetextsforthedigitalage.Thehistoryofourpartydoesnotbeginin1989.Theoldergenera-tionsamongusgainedvaluableexperiencebefore1989—intheupswingofthe1968movement,inthepeaceandenvironmentalmovements,orintheGDR.ItwouldbeapityiftheseexperienceswereonlyavailabletofuturegenerationsinthedistortedformofreportsbytheGermanSecretService,orintheGauckfiles.

1  Cerstin Gammelin, “Eigentümliche Stimmung”, Süddeutsche Zeitung, 20 August 2019.  2  Osterloh, Falk, “Ohne Gedächtnis wären wir nichts” (film review), Deutsches Ärzteblatt, 106/2009, p. 28, available at: www.aerzteblatt.de/archiv/65395/Filmkritik-Ohne-Gedaechtnis-waeren-wir-nichts 

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IhavetakenoverrolesinthePartyofDe-mocraticSocialism(PDS)orDieLinkesince1991,withsomeinterruptions.IwasFede-ralTreasurerfrom1997to2002andFederalExecutiveDirectorfrom2005to2010.IwasamemberoftheBundestagfrom1998to2002andagainfrom2005.In2015,SahraWagenknechtandIwereelectedparliamen-tarychairpersons.Ihavealwaysfeltrespon-sibleforallareasofpolicy,asentimentLo-tharBiskyandGregorGysihavepromotedaspartyorparliamentarychairpersons.Cle-

arlydefiningresponsibilitiesdoesnotmeanrestrictingyourviewpointtoasingledepart-ment.Forthisreason,mymemoryisshapedbyaperspectiveonthepoliticalsituationandthesituationwithintheparty.Istandforatriadthatcombinesademocratic-socialistperspectivewithanorganizationalaspira-tionanddemocraticresistance.IhavenopersonalarchivethatIcandrawfrom.Ihaveanabundanceofrichmemories,butIhavequestionedmymemorylessaboutepiso-desandmoreaboutcontradictions—aboutwhatweshouldnotforget.

OPPORTUNITIES SEIZED – OPPORTUNITIES MISSEDIn1994,theunthinkablecametopassinGermany:followingthestateelectionsinSaxony-Anhalt,theSPDandTheGreensformedaminoritygovernment.ReinhardHöppner,MinisterPresidentoftheSPD,andHans-JochenTschiche,parliamentarychairpersonofAlliance90/TheGreens,werepreparedtotoleratethePDS.Butin-stead,the“Magdeburgmodel”ofindirectparticipationingovernmentwasborn,andaspellwasbroken:governmentalresponsi-bilityfollowedforusinMecklenburg-West-ernPomeraniain1998,inBerlinin2001,inBrandenburgin2009,andinThuringiain2014.IntheWestGermanstates,theSocialDemocratsshiedawayfromtheprospectofformingcoalitionswiththeDemocraticSocialists.InSaarland,Hesse,andNorthRhine-Westphalia,theydidnothavethecouragetodoso,ortheydidsotoolate,oronlyhalf-heartedly.Thebreakthroughwasnotachievedthereuntil2019,whenDieLinkemovedintotheBremenSenate.Atthefederallevel,therecouldhavebeenared-red-greengovernmentfollowingthe2013federalelections,buttheSPDdidnoteven

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holdtalkswithDieLinke.Iamasupporterofcentre-leftcoalitionsatboththefederalandstatelevel,amongotherreasonsbe-causeouraimshouldbenotonlytocriticizeconditions,butalsototakeresponsibilityinhelpingtoshapethem.AsMarxsaid,wedonotwanttoberight—wewanttochangetheworld.Inmyview,attheveryleastthishastodowithstartingtoredistributesocialwealth,isaboutasustainabilitystrategy,andasubstantialreductioninarmsexports.Iamforproposals,notforblockages.

PUT YOUR HEAD UP, NOT YOUR HANDSThePDShadbeenintheBundestagsince1990,whereithadbeenopenlyhostileformanyyears.ThesehostilitiesreachedasadculminationpointwhenGerhardRiege,oneofourrepresentativeswhowasalsoacleverandsensitivescholarfromJena,committedsuicide.“Iamafraidofthehatredthatisdi-rectedatmeintheBundestag”,hewroteinhisfarewellletter.In1994,HelmutKohlinsultedthePDS,callingthem“red-paintedfascists”.Inthesameyear,thefederalSPDpassedaresolutionsayingthatitwouldnotworkwiththePDS.CDUGeneralSecretaryPeterHintzehad200,000postersmadeforthe1994federalelectioncampaignwhichhadredsocksprintedonthem(apejora-tivetermforcommunistsinGermany),andtheslogan“Intothefuture,butnotinredsocks!”Wedidnotmissthisgreatopportu-nity,andredsockssoonbecameournum-beroneelectioncampaignhit.Thisstoryisagreatexampleofourmembers’attitudes:wearenoteasilydiscouraged.ThePDS,laterDieLinke,expandedthepoliticalspec-trumtotheleftandthusextendedwhatwasnormalelsewhereinEuropeintoGermany.Iamnotafraidtocallthisanhistoricachieve-

ment.NeitherEastnorWestGermanyhadademocraticsocialistparty.Atatimewhentherightisgainingground,thisisshouldnotbeunderestimated.

THE HOUSE IS BUILT FROM THE BOTTOM UPThereweremanyoccasionsinthe1990sonwhichIhadtoexplainthePDS’smeagreelectionresultsintheWesttothepartyrep-resentatives.Mystandardsaying,thatthehouseisbuiltfromthebottomup,wasnoth-ingmorethanwhistlinginthewoods,butatthesametimeitexpressedafirmconviction:apartydrawsitsstrengthfromacommittedbase,fromvoluntarycommitment.ItakemyhatofftoourcomradesintheWestGer-manstates,whichforalongtimewasthesiteofourdiaspora,aswellastothestrongstructuresintheEast,whichgaveadvicetomanypeopleonissuessuchaspensionsorrents.Ihavealwaysbeenheavilyinvolvedinlocalpoliticalwork.ClosecontactwithAn-gelikaGramkowinSchwerin,withourfirstfemalemayorofastatecapital,withStef-fenHarzer,Hildburghausen’slong-servingmayor,orwithMichaeleSojka,thedistrictadministratorofAltenburg,remindedmetoalwaysthinkabouttheneedsofthecit-iesandcommunitieswhenmakingfederalpoliticaldecisions.BeingfirmlyrootedinmyhomestateMecklenburg-Vorpommernisveryimportantforme.

RIDICULED AND COPIED In2002,weintroducedourfirstproposaltotheBundestagforastatutoryminimumwagethatwouldensureadecentstandardofliving.Allotherparliamentarygroups,in-cludingmostunions,rejectedourpropos-als.Fromthatpointonwards,wepressedtheissueconsistently.Itwasnotuntil2015

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thatminimumwagelegislationwaspassed.Sincethen,theSPDhasprideditselfonhav-ingauthoredtheproposal.Ofcourse,therearenocopyrightsforpoliticalideas,anditwouldbenarrow-mindedtoinsistonclaim-ingauthorshiprightsforprogressivesocialcauses.Manyofourpolicyproposalswereinitiallydownplayedasunrealisticorasbe-ingnotfinanciallytenable—asentimentthatthemediaoftenhelpeddisseminate.Icouldnameseveralexamplesofpositionsforwhichwewereinitiallyridiculedorrep-rimanded,butthathavesinceeitherbeenimplementedoradoptedbytherelevantpoliticalgroups:opposingmilitaryinter-ventionsinothercountries,opposingfeesforuniversitycoursesorapprenticeships,opposingweaponsexportstowarzones.Inthespringof2015,whenIspokeintheBun-destagaboutpreparingourcountryforthearrivalinourcountryofupwardsof500,000refugees,theunionsinparticularaccusedmeofpessimism.Howthingsplayedoutaf-terthatiswell-known.“Changebeginswithopposition”wasoneofourparty’sslogansinthe1990s.Wehavekeptourword.ButthisalsoledtoquiteafewpeoplecomingtoconsiderDieLinketobepartoftheEstablishmentandalsoper-ceivingthepartyasavenueforprotest.Weareinapositionwheremanypeopleagreewithouranalysesandgoals,butstruggletobelievethatwearecapableofimplementingourpolicies.

BETWEEN FRUSTRATION AND JOYOppositionisnotawalkinthepark,andsometimesitcanbeveryfrustrating.Timeandtimeagain,ourmembersofparliamentandtheirqualifiedstaffdrawupmotionsanddraftlawsthatarethenconsistentlythrown

outinparliament.ThereisareasonwhythepictureSisyphus macht Pause(SisyphusTakesaBreak)bySiegfriedSchützeishang-inginouroffice.Theworkmentionedaboveisnonethelessindispensable,sinceourtaskisnotonlytocriticallyengageingovern-ment,butalsotodevelopleft-wingalterna-tives.Wehaverepeatedlyachievedpublicsuccesswithoneformofparliamentaryin-itiative:parliamentaryinquiries.WearethemostinquisitivegroupintheBundestag.Thishasoftenledtoremarkableadmissionsonthepartofthegovernment.

POLITICS NEEDS TO TAKE A DEEP BREATHWhiletherelocationoftheBundestagandthefederalgovernmentfromtranquilBonntoBerlinwasalreadyfollowedbyaconsid-erableaccelerationofcommunication,theemergenceofsocialmediahasheraldedtheonsetofanentirelynewsetofdimensionsthathavebeendetrimentaltothequalityofsaidcommunication.Inthepastfewyears,30-secondstatementsor280-charactertweetsbecamethestandardforexpressingpoliticalopinions;afour-minuteinterviewisalreadyconsideredafeaturearticle.Ifthecurrentjobmarketfiguresarepublishedat10:00,Ihavetobepresentat10:10withastandpointinordertobenoticed.Theeventsthatarecurrentlyoccurringaroundtheworldforcemetobeattentivearoundtheclock;thereisbarelyanytimeformetobreatheandthink.We,too,havelearnedthehardway.In2002,MichaelSchumann,whomIholdinhighesteem,statedonbe-halfofthePDS:“Wearethesmallestoftheparties,butwehavethegreatestambitiontoachievechange.”1Heconcludedthatasocialistpartyinparticularcouldnotreduceitselftoapoliticsofeverydaylife.Contraryto

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CREATORS OF MEMORY

LotharBisky’surgentadvice,afterourinitialpowerfulentryintotheBundestagin1998,thepartyfailedtoquicklyproceedwiththeelaborationofanewpartyprogramme.Thiscontributedtoourfailuretoreachthefive-percenthurdlein2002.Votersnaturallydonotreadalotofmanifestoes,butpartiesrequireareliablecompassfortheiractions.Ithereforestronglyadvocatethatourpartybeguidedbythefightforsocialjustice,peace,democracy,andsustainabilityandthatourparliamentarygroupcontinuetoex-poseHartzIVasArmut per Gesetz(legislatedpoverty),tostandupforfairpensionsandagainstchildpoverty,tocondemnpartici-pationinwars,andtofightagainsttwo-tierhealthcare.Thisalsoincludesourcontinu-ingcommitmenttoEastGermany,althoughthishasnotalwaysbeen—andisstillnot

always—uncontroversialwithintheparlia-mentarygroup.Itisalsopartofourworkingmethodtoincludeexternalexpertiseandtoallowcriticsofourpositionstohavetheirsayintheparliamentarygroup’smeetingsorre-treats.IwouldliketomentionthejournalistsHans-UlrichJörgesandJakobAugstein,theauthorsJanaHenselandSabineRennefanz,thepoliticalscientistAlbrechtvonLuckeorGeneralHaraldKujatasexamples.Theymakearguingfunandallowittosharpenthesenses.

1  Michael Schumann, Hoffnung PDS: Reden, Aufsätze, Entwürfe 1989– 2000, edited by Wolfram Adolphi, Berlin: 2004, p. 158. 

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WalterBenjaminwantedtoensurethat“nothingthathaseverhappenedshouldberegardedaslostforhistory”,evenifitrequi-redhumanitytofirstberedeemedbeforeitcouldinvokeandcorrectlyinterpretallitspastmoments.1Heopposedconformistmodesofmemoryandthenaïvechrono-logyofvictory.Therulingclassforgedthehistoricalmemoryofthecitizenswithme-morials,holidays,schoolbooks,andthehistoriesofgreatmenwhoareabsentfrom

mostpeople’severydaycontext.Eventhehighestculturalartefactslikecastlesandchurchescontainsomethingbarbaric,Ben-jaminwrote,notleastbecausetheycameaboutfromthe“anonymoustoil”ofthosewhoremaininvisibleinthewritingofhis-tory,whosepainisunfulfilledandunredee-med,throughwhichthepasttakesonanexplosiveforceforthepresent.Thetaskis“ineveryepoch…todelivertraditionanewfromtheconformismwhichisonthepointofoverwhelmingit”.Thepotentialfortheli-berationofmankindlies“notinthefuture,butinhistoryandinmemory”.Thetaskfortherevolutionaryclassesisnottocarryouttheobjectivelawsofdevelopment,butrat-hertobreakopenthecontinuumofhistory.Consequently,itisalwaysamatterofinclu-dingthestrugglesoftheoppressed,thestrugglefordignityandone’slivelihood,forrights,andforparticipationinourhistorio-graphy.That“therulingideasofaneraarealwaysonlytheideasoftherulingclass”,asMarxandEngelsformulateditin“TheCommu-nistManifesto”,appliesinparticulartothetraditionswrittenbythenobilityandadaptedtotheneedsoftherulingclassineachcase.Thus,historiographyispredom-inantlycharacterizednotbythesearchforknowledge,butbytherulers’interpretationofevents.Truememorythereforeincludesboththesketchesofthecurrentepochandthecorrectionoffalsetraditionsthroughnewinsights,throughtheliberationofhis-toryfromtherulingcalculusandthroughsymbolsoftruth.Otherwise,thelivingconditionsandstrugglesoftheoppressedwilldisappearfrommemory,whilefalseac-countsshapetraditionsthatinturnformthefoundationforfatalerrorsandlies,butalsoforcuriosities.

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WHO FOUNDED EUROPE, AND WHEN?IfitwasnotZeuswhoissaidtohavetrans-formedintotheshapeofawhitebullandmadelovetothegoddessEuropaonthebeachofCrete,thenitwasatthelatestChar-lemagne,whomweencounterinthehistorybooksas“thefatherofEurope”or“thelight-houseofEurope”.Everyyear,thedignitar-iesofthecityofAachenawardtheCharle-magnePrizetoan“outstandingEuropean”.WhatisnotmentionedisthatCharlemagnewasamassmurdererwho,inthenameofChrist,confrontedallEuropeanswiththechoice:“Baptismordeath?”EasternEuro-peanswhorefusedtobebaptizedweremur-deredorenslavedbyhim.Eventoday,eth-nologistsrefertothemasSlavs(slaves).Thehistoryofhisvictimsishardlyknown,andtheyarecertainlynothonouredwithprizes.Instead,thestoriesofhisroyalbiographerEinhardhavebeenpasseddown:“Karl…hadaroundhead,hiseyeswereverylargeandlively,hisnosesomewhatlong;…hisappearancewasalwaysimposinganddig-nified,nomatterwhetherhestoodorsat.”2

IS LUDWIG ERHARD THE FAT-HER OF THE SOCIAL MARKET ECONOMY?Evensomeleftistprofessorspraisethe“Keynesiansocial-democraticcenturyaf-ter1945”,whichwehaveLudwigErhardtothankfor.Thisisoneofhistory’sgreat-estlies.WhenAdenauer,Erhard,andsev-eralNazisgovernedtheWestGermanstate,workingclassfamilieswereonlyabletomakeendsmeetthroughunder-the-tableworkandchildlabour;peoplewhowereretiredhadtovisitrelativesinordertostaywarm,childrenweresenttolabourcamps,wheretheywererentedouttofarmers.Er-

hardimposedwagefreezesat20percentin-flationanddescribedstatewelfareas“mod-ernmania”.Governmentswereright-wingand“neoliberal,”yetmostsocialimprove-mentsweremadeduringthistime.Whyisthatthecase?Socialimprovementsdonotcomefromeconomicdoctrinesorbourgeoisgovern-mentalconstellations,theyarethepricethattherulingclasspaystopacifyresistanceandintegraterenegades.MetalworkersisSchleswig-Holsteinhadtogoonstrikeforanentirewinterinordertowintherighttosickpay.Socialreformssuchasimprove-mentstopensionsorco-determinationinthecoalandsteelindustrywerethepricespaidtopacifytheanti-nuclearmovementandthemovementagainstrearmament.Inthisrespect,thelegendofLudwigErhardasthefatherofthesocialmarketeconomyisfatalinthatiterasesfrommemorytheactingsubjectwhoaloneiscapableoffightingforimprovementsorofpreventingthingsfromgettingworse,andattributeshisvictoriestoastatedoctrineorareactionarypolitician.Theeconomicmiraclewasbasedonafunc-tioningindustrialbasethatwascreatedbymillionsofforcedandenslavedlabourersduringtheSecondWorldWar,andon13millionmigrantsfromtheEastwhoreceivedwelcomepremiumsandhomeconstructionloans,whichinturngaveindustryaboost.

HAMBURG CITY HALL – KAISERSAAL?Inanefforttocorrectanumberofsymbolsthatconveyafalsesenseofhistory,DieLinke’sparliamentarygroupinHamburghastakenontheKaisersaal(Emperor’sHall).TheKaisersaalisthesecond-largestandmostfrequentedhallintheHamburgCityHall.ItwasnamedafterKaiserWilhelm,whoonce

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visitedHamburgin1895ontheoccasionoftheinaugurationoftheKielCanal.Thehallisadornedwithallkindsofcolonialdecora-tions,withbustsofemperorsandpaintingsofotherrulersoftheHanseaticLeague.In2019,DieLinke’sparliamentarygroupap-pliedforthehalltoberenamedRepublicanHall.After100years,theNovemberRevo-lution,whichstandsforthebeginningofre-publican-democraticconditionsinGermanyandalsoinHamburg,wastobebroughtoutoftheshadowsofHamburg’sculturalmem-ory.Theworkers’andsoldiers’councils,whichformedtheofficialHamburggovern-mentattheturnof1918–1919,wereoustedinthespringof1919,andthedirectcouncildemocracybecameaparliamentarydemoc-racy.Butthereisnothinginthetownhalltocommemoratethemeither.TherenamingoftheKaisersaalisapoliticalactthatfightsforanemancipatory,libera-torymemory—formemoryfrombelow.AndtheNovemberRevolutionhasalwaysbeenmorehistoricallyimportantthananemper-or’sfleetingvisit.TheNovemberRevolutionisanimportantreminderofthestrugglesforsocialliberationandprovidesanimpetustodebatethemeaningofleft-wingpolitics;arebellionagainsttheprevailingconditions,whichiscarriedoverintotheparliaments.Theknowledgeofandfeelingforthispast,thestrugglesofmanypeopleovermanycenturies,includingthelessonsofdefeat,areaconstantsourceofstimulation.

Hopeforliberationliesinthememoriesofhistoricalmomentsinwhichdynamicsofpoliticaldominanceandcontrolwereover-thrownandsubverted—intheParisCom-mune,theOctoberRevolutionof1917,intheSpanishCivilWarof1936,theliberationmovementsofthe“ThirdWorld”,theupris-ingof1968,theliberationstruggleinBeijingin1989,andmanymore.TakingasastartingpointtheyoungMarx’scategoricalimpera-tivetooverturnallconditionsinwhichmanisanenslavedbeing,theseevents,topara-phraseBenjamin,blewupthecontinuumofdominationinabriefflash.Marxdescribeditthus:“Reformingconsciousnessconsistsonlyinawakeningtheworld…fromthedreamaboutitself.”3Thisrequireskeepingtrackofouractivitiesandliberatingtradi-tionsfromconformism.Forthesetasksweneedcritical,non-conformistminds,evenintimesofevil,for“thealmostinsolubletaskconsistsofrefusingtoallowoneselftoberendereddumb,eitherbythepowerofoth-ersorbyone’sownpowerlessness”.4

1  Walter Benjamin belonged to the circle of the Frankfurt School for Social Research, which also included Adorno and Horkheimer. Questions of histo-rical reflection play an important role both in Benjamin’s “Berlin Chronicle” from 1932 and in the unfinished Arcades Project. After his escape from the German Wehrmacht and shortly before his suicide, he wrote the famous “Theses on the Philosophy of History” in 1940. This text is considered to be one of the most beautiful, but also one of the most enigmatic philosophi-cal texts of the 20th century.  2  See www.route-charlemagne.eu/Charle-magne/Karl/Karl_unbekannt_08/index.html  3  Karl Marx, Briefe aus den Deutsch-Französischen Jahrbüchern, ibid., / Friedrich Engels: Werke, Vol. 1, Berlin 1976, p. 346.  4  Theodor W. Adorno, Minima Moralia, Frankfurt, 1994, p. 64.

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WhenIwasaskedtocontributetothisvo-lume,Ididnotthinkaboutitforverylongatallbeforeaccepting.IbeganmullingoverwhatitwasthatIwantedtowriteabout,andwhatIshouldwriteabout.Questionsarose:Whatisaleft-wingmemoryoftheparlia-mentarygroupandhowdoesitcomeabout?Whataboutmyresponsibilityasamemberofparliament?WhoisreallyinterestedinhowIhavepositionedmyselfasaleft-wingmemberofparliament?Andwhydoweneedaleft-wingmemoryinthefirstplace?

AsaparliamentarygroupintheBunde-stagthatthrowsitselfintothepoliticaltur-moileveryday,developspositions,istheprogressivevoiceoftheopposition,andcriticizesthegovernmentfromaleft-wingperspective,wecertainlyhaveaspecialsignificanceandresponsibility.Wehavetomakesurethatourpoliciesarecomprehen-sible,bothinourdailyworkasmembersofparliamentandasaparliamentarygroup,aswellasinthedevelopmentofaleft-wingmemorythatwillenableusandsubsequentmembersofDieLinketoevaluateourpoli-ciesandtodiscussthem.AccordingtoMauriceHalbwachs’stheoryof“collectivememory”,socialthoughtisessentiallyamemory“whoseentirecontentconsistssolelyofcollectivememories,butonlythosethateachsocietyinitsrespectiveepochcanreconstructwithinitscontempo-raryframeofreference”.1

Thecapacitytoreconstructsomethingre-quirestraditions.ForAleidaAssmann,therearetwodifferentmodesofhandingdowntraditionsfromthepasttofuturegenera-tions,andthereforealsotwodifferenttypesof“memory”whoseinteractionshapesculturalmemoryandthusthedevelopmentofthecultureinquestion:ontheonehand,“messages”thatareconsciouslywrittenandpresentedforthispurpose,whichdeter-minewhatisconsiderednecessaryforthefunctioningofasociety,andwhichthereforealso—asthe“functionalmemory”ofthissociety—mustalwaysbepresentandcher-ished.Ontheotherhand,“traces”aremate-rialtestamentsofthepastthatoftenaroseunintentionally,or,sotospeak,en passant.AleidaAssmanndescribesthemasfollows:“Theyareatfirstmutewitnesseswhomustfirstbemadetospeakagainbyspecialiststhroughthecreationofacontext.”2Theyare

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alargeandconstantlychangingrepositoryofmemorythatmustbeusedinordertobeofusetoitsusers.ThissecondcategoryisalsowhereAleidaAssmannlocatesthear-chivesthatcollectandpreservethemani-foldelementsofthis“memoryrepository”andmakethemavailabletotheinterested,tothecurious.Toacertainextent,thesetwokindsofmem-oriescanalsofoundinDieLinke’sworkintheBundestag.“Messages”:theseareourpositionsintheformofprintedmaterialsfromparliament,thatis,motionsanddraftlawswhicharediscussedincommitteesanddebatedandvotedoninplenaryses-sions;aswellasthelargeandsmallinquirieswiththemoreorlessinformativeresponsesofthefederalgovernment.Theydocumentwhattheparliamentanditsmembershaveworkedonandhow,andthisinformationisthenpresentedandtransmittedaccordingly.Theyareaccessibleviatheinternet,butarealsoheldintheparliamentaryarchives,andfilltonnesofshelfspaceinpubliclibrariesintheformofrepresentativefoliovolumes.Inaddition,representativesalsohavetheirownwebsiteswheretheypresentthesematerialstogetherwithpersonal“mes-sages”—pressreleases,positionpapers,events—inasenseasanindividual“mes-sage”.Thebusinessandotherregulationsarealsopartofthe“messages”,asaretheminutesofindividualparliamentarygroupsandexecutiveboardmeetings,whichshowhowthesegroupswork,whattheyhaveworkedonanddecided,andthesegroups’electionandeventprogrammes.“Traces”,ontheotherhand,areallthosematerialsthatarenecessaryforthedevelop-mentofa“message”.Thisalsoincludesalltheideasandconsiderationsthatdidnotbe-comea“message”.Theyhavebeenworked

on,drafted,debated,amended,reworked,andfinallyitwasdecidedthattheywouldnotbecomea“message”.Asaresult,theydonotleavetheofficeoftheparliamentarygrouportherepresentative.The“traces”alsoincludethematerialsthatarecreatedfortheorganizationalneedsoftheparty—frompersonnelfiles,toinvoices,tothedocumentationofevents.Themajor-ityofthese“traces”nevergobeyondtheinternaldiscussionsoftheparliamentarygrouporitsoffice;theyaresubjecttolegalprovisionsgoverningtheirretentionperiodand—especiallyinthecaseofpersonaldata—theirdestruction.Allthisconstitutesthememoryofparlia-mentarywork,andisavailableintheAr-chivesforDemocraticSocialism(ADS)asaresourcetoassistintheformationof“DieLinke’smemory”.Unfortunately,thisisnottheendofthestory.Thematerialsmustfirstbecollectedandorderedbydesignatedper-sonnelbeforetheyenterthearchiveandbe-comepartofthatmemory.Andadecisionmustbemadeastowhatcanandmaybehandedovertothearchive—sincewealsoworkwithmaterialsthatmaynotleavetheBundestagorthatareprotectedaspersonaldataandcannotsimplybe“handedover”.However,whatiscollectedandstoredintheparliamentarygroupandtherepresent-atives’officesarenotfilesinthegeneralsense,hencethequestionmarkinthetitle.Weareaparliamentarygroup,notanadmin-istrativeauthority(eventhoughonemightsometimesgetthatimpression).Wedonothaveastrictlyregulatedorderofoperationswithpreciselydefinedresponsibilities.Thegoalistodevelopa“message”;howitisdeliveredisultimatelylessimportantthanthefactthatitexistsandthateveryonecansomehowhelptoconveyit.

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Inotherwords:whatwecanoffer“DieLinke’smemory”aremostlycollectionsofmaterialfromthepreliminarystagesofour“messages”,andthesecanbequiteexcit-ing.Forexample,whenwedraftedabillin2006forthelong-overduerehabilitationoftheso-calledwartraitors,itwasnotforesee-ablethatthiswouldtriggeradebateinandoutsideofparliamentthatwouldlastthreeyearsandwouldresultinoneofthegreatestparliamentarysuccessesofaparliamentarygroupinthecontentiousfieldofthepoliticsofhistory.Thereweresomany“messages”and“traces”ofvariouskindsthatDominicHeiligandIendedupwritinganentirebookentitledKriegsverrat. Vergangenheitspolitik in Deutschland – Analysen, Kommentare und Dokumente einer Debatte(WarTreason:Pol-iciesforDealingwiththePastinGermany–Analyses,Comments,andDocumentsofaDebate),whichwaspublished2011.Sure,thereareexceptions.Butconsideringthefactthatweoftenmischaracterizeourownwork,muchofwhatmayseemratherunimportanttoustodaycouldlaterbeofin-teresttoothermembersofDieLinkeorthegeneralpublic.Asanyquasi-authorityshoulddo,wehaveneatlyregulatedourdatastorage:since2009,wehavehadafilingstructurefordocumentscalleda“fileplan”.Thisfileplanstatesgenerallyvalidprinciplesandrulesforfiling,definesaccessrightsandprovidesadetailedoverviewofthefilingstructureinforce.Inordertomakeitclearhowthefilingworksinthisstructure,wehavealsoimplementedrulesforworkdocumentationsince2019.Theserulesdefinethecreationandnamingoffoldersandfilesinthefileplan,makingiteasierforeveryonetofindthe“traces”theyarelookingfor.Alltheor-ganizingstructuresandrulesareadjustedto

suitourworkingneeds,meaningfilesanddocumentsareedited,changed,moved,resaved,andsometimesevendeleted.Thispartofthememoryisthussubjecttoconstantchangeandisgrowingmoreandmore,especiallymediadata:photos,au-diorecordingsofmeetingsandevents,butaboveallvideofilesnowrequiremorestor-agespaceonourserversthanalltheotherfiles.Incontrast,theshareof“paper”tracesiscontinuouslydecreasing.Inordertoincludethese“traces”(andalso“messages”,especiallyfromtheparliamen-tarygroup,sincetheydonotfallwithintheareaofresponsibilityoftheparliamentaryarchives,weareresponsiblefortheseour-selves)in“DieLinke’smemory”intheADS,wemadeatransferagreementwiththear-chivein2006,whichwassupplementedinNovember2010toaccountfordigitaldoc-uments,andwasrevisedagainin2017inviewoftheprovisionsoftheGeneralDataProtectionRegulation(GDPR).Withinthegroup,anarchivingpolicyregulatesthejurisdictionsandresponsibilitiesfortheprovisionofthedatatobehandedover.Inaddition,thefileplancontainsinformationforeachindividualstructuralelementintermsofwhetherornotthefileslocatedhereshouldbetransferredtotheADS.Thishandoveristhenorganizedbythepartystaffmember(s)responsibleforquestionsaboutthearchivewhoworkinconsultationandcooperationwithcolleaguesinthearchive.Intheparty’searlyyearsintheBundestag,contributionswereoftenconnectedwithintensivepersuasivework;bothinthepartyandamongthemembersofparliament,theopinionthatthemostimportantthings,the“messages”,werepresentedandsavedbytheBundestaganyway,orcouldbere-trievedviatheparty’sinternetpagesand

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“stored”therebecameincreasinglypopu-lar.Everythingelsewas“notsoimportant”andmostpeoplewerenotovercomebythevaindesiretodepictthemselveswithsomescribbleddraftsforthesakeofposterity(well,maybesomedid).Lastbutnotleast,anotherelementthatplayedarolewaspeo-ple’sfearoflosingcontrolovertheirdatabyhandingitovertothearchive:woulditbesafethere?Whowouldbeallowedtoseethefiles?Thiswasnotandisnotanentirelyunjustifiedfearinviewofthenotespeciallyfriendlytreatmentthatthemediahasbeenknowntogivetoanumberofpartymem-bers.However,theADSandtheparliamen-taryarchiveswereluckilyabletocalmthesefearsthroughacorrespondingpractice:withouttheconsentofeithertherepresent-ativedonatingtheirfilesortheparliamentarypartymanager,noonewastobegivenac-cesstothearchiverecordsbeforetheexpi-

rationofthespecifiedretentionperiods—andthispromisewaskept.Thewillingnesstoentrustone’sowndatato“DieLinke’smemory”hasgrownwiththeconfidenceinthereliabilityoftheADS,butthereisstillroomforimprovement.Intheend,onethingiscertain:thehistoryofaparliamentarypartycanbewritten,butwecanhardlyinfluencebywhom.Butitshouldbewrittenonthebasisofour“traces”and“messages”,andnotonthebasisofthemessagesprovidedaboutusbyothers.Wecanensurethisbyhandingoverthe“traces”ofourstoriesandhistoriestotheADS.

1  Maurice Halbwachs, Das Gedächtnis und seine sozialen Bedingungen, Frankfurt, 1985, p. 360.  2  Aleida Assmann, “Archive als Medien des kultu-rellen Gedächtnisses”, Lebendige Erinnerungskultur für die Zukunft: 77. Deut-scher Archivtag 2007 in Mannheim, Fulda: 2008, pp. 21–33.

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FridaysforFuture,theunteilbarprotests,protestsagainsttheG20summitinHam-burg,theInternationalWomen’sStrike,andtheongoingactionsagainstNazisallprovethatemancipatoryprotestsareapartofmo-dernsocieties,haveshapedthemintheircontemporaryform,andcontinuetodoso.Butwherewillthedocumentsproducedbytheseresistancemovementsbearchivedtopreservethemforposterity?1

Thearchivesfortheseandothersocialmovementscollectandpreservetheforms

ofcounter-knowledgethatmovementsgenerate.Thereareapproximately40or50largearchivesthroughoutGermanythatarededicatedtocollectingmaterialseitheronspecifictopicsoronabroadrangeoftopics,andprobablyaround150smallerarchives.Inaddition,thereareseveraldozenenviron-mentallibraries.2Manyofthesearchiveswerecreatedastheresultofmovements,areinasenseconnectedtoeachother,andarebasedonvoluntarywork.Beyondthat,therearesemi-governmentalarchivesandlibrariesonthetopicofso-cialmovementsthathavepaidpositionsandalsogather,save,andmakematerialsfromthevarietyofdifferentresistanceandprotestmovementsofthelastcenturyac-cessible.3Theholdingsinthesearchivesarebasedaroundcertaintopics,suchasNationalSocialismandanti-fascism,theAußerparliamentarischeOpposition(Ex-tra-ParliamentaryOpposition,APO),theSocialistGermanStudentUnion(SDS),thestudentmovement,thefeministandlesbianmovements,theenvironmentalandpeacemovements,theinternationalistmovement,andofcoursealsotheentirespectrumofoppositional,leftist,andalternativegroups.Sincetheyaretheeasiestmaterialstoar-chive,allofthesearchiveshavelargecol-lectionsofnewspapersaswellasacompre-hensivecollectionofbrochuresand“grey”oreven“illegal”literature,whicharenotcollectedanywhereelse.Generally,theyalsocataloguebooks,flyers,posters,stick-ers,andothermemorabilia.Theamountofinstitutionalsupportthesearchivesreceivevaries:Whilemanyoftheinstitutionalizedarchivesofthenewsocialmovementshavefixedstructuresandpaidjobs,whichaffordsthemagreatdealofcontinuity,theinde-pendentarchivesofthesocialmovements

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findthemselvesinamuchmoretenuousposition,eventhoughmanyofthemhavebeenoperatingfor20yearsormore.Inotherwords,muchofthelegacyofthenewso-cialmovementsultimatelyrestsonprivateshouldersandunpaidwork.

WHERE DOES IT COME FROM?Individualsandinstitutionsareundernoob-ligationtodeliverfilestoarchivessuchasthese,andtherearealsonoassignedfacili-tiesforbuildingupfiles.Thematerialscometogetherthroughdonations,forexamplefrom(former)activists,politicalgroupsandorganizationsthathavedissolvedandopttodonatetheirorganizationalarchives,fromduplicatesfromthearchivesofothermove-ments,andoftentimesthroughinfo-shopsthatcooperatebygivingtheirnewspapersubscriptionstothearchive.Forthisworkinparticular,arelationshipoftrustbetweenthegroupsandpeopledonatingthemate-rialsandthearchiveitselfisindispensable.Bothmustseethemselvesasapartofthesamemilieuofoppositionalsolidarity,becommittedtosimilarideas,andthedonorsmusttrusttheseindependentarchivesmorethanstatearchivestomakeacorrectandappropriateassessmentofthecontentandthustoprocessthematerial.

WHO DO THEY DO IT FOR?Eventhoughthepastisanever-presenttopicforthemedia,neoliberalismhaspro-ducedastrangeformofahistoricity.Manynewactiviststodayknowverylittleaboutthestrugglesandprotestsofpreviouscen-turies.Thisahistoricalattitudeistheresultofanundogmaticleftistapproachthathaslongbeencharacterizedbyspontaneity,andwhicheschewsplanned,strategicpol-itics,aswellasmoreconventionalformsof

organization.Intheeventthattheydotakehistoryintoaccount,itismostlyevokedasameanstolegitimizetheirowntraditionalpraxis.Itisforthisreason,andduetoun-consolidatedstructuresandmembershipfluctuation,thatacollectivememoryissodifficulttoestablish.4Asthehegemonicpoliticsofhistoryproveseveryday,remem-beringisnotharmless:itnotonlycreatesunderstandingandreassurance,butalsocreatesstandards.Whatshouldberemem-beredandwhatshouldbe(forcefully)for-gotten?Thearchivesthatconsiderthemselvestoconstitutepartoftheexistingpoliticalmovementsseetheirworkasacontributiontoamorecomprehensiveunderstandingofcontemporarystruggles.Asthesaying“learnfromhistory”suggests,theirpri-marytargetgroupiscontemporarypoliticalmovements.However,thesearchivesarealsofrequentedbystudents,academics,andpeoplewhoworkinthemedia,whicharealsothelargestusergroupsoftheinsti-tutionalizedarchives.

NETWORKING, PORTALS, AND SEARCHESManyarchivesofsocialandpoliticalmove-mentsmeetonceayearontheinvitationoftheHeinrichBöllFoundationataneventthatisintendedtofosteranexchangebetweencolleaguesworkingindifferentdisciplines.5Forthosearchivesthatdonothaveanypaidpositions,(transregional)cooperationoreventheideaofanactual“preservationofatraditionthroughanetwork”veryquicklyputsthematthelimitsoftheircapacities.Theonlinedatabase“dataspace”enablesamoreextensivesearchintheholdingsofvariousinfo-shopsandmovementar-chives.6Arelativelyhighnumberofmove-

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mentarchives,suchasthearchivesoftheInformationszentrumsDritteWelt(ThirdWorldInformationCentre)inFreiburg,theAntifaschistischePressearchivundBil-dungszentrum(Anti-FascistPressArchivesandEducationCenter,apabiz)inBerlin,theBibiothekderFreien(LibraryoftheFree),thelargestlibraryonthesubjectofanar-chism,aswellasthearchivesofparty-re-latedfoundationsandotherinstitutionalizedarchivesandlibrarieshaveatleastenteredtheircollectionsofperiodicalsintothepe-riodicalsdatabaseoftheGermanNationalLibrary(ZDB).Aselectionofrecommendedbooksonthehistoryofsocialmovementscanbefoundunderthecorrespondingkey-wordsinthecollectivebibliographyoncrit-icalhistory.7

OUTLOOK Thedifferentarchivesintroducedherere-sistanyunambiguousoruniformdefinition.Whattheyhaveincommonisthattheyaredepositoriesofknowledgethatmakeavaila-bleanalmostinexhaustiblesourceofmate-rialsforunderstandingsocialchange.8Thearchivistswillcontinuetheirworkdespitealladversityandthefactthattheirworkisun-paid.Thehistoricizationandscholarshipthatdealswithworkingthroughthe1980sand1990sinboththeEastandWesthasonlyjustbegun.Therefore,sucharchiveswillbeuniqueplaceswhereimportantsourcesofinformationcanbefound.Someofthoseinvolvedinthearchivesofsocialandpoliticalmovementshavebeendemandingacloserworkingrelationshipbetweenstateandmovementarchivesforyears.Forexample,aworkinggrouponTra-ditionsoftheNewSocialMovements9hasexistedwithintheofficialGermanArchivistsAssociation(VdA)since2009,andthereare

nowgroupsdedicatedtonewsocialmove-mentsatconferencesofhistoriansandar-chivists.In2016,apositionpaperfromtheVdAontheTraditionsoftheNewSocialMovementswasintroduced,althoughitisyettoleadanywheretothisday.10

Therequestsmadeforpublicsupportonbehalfofthemovementarchivesarebeingblocked,whichmakesitclearthatissuesconcerningarchivesarealwaysalsoissuesconcerningdomination.Inearlieruprisings,archiveswereoftenthefirstthingstobeburneddownbecausetheywereconsid-eredsymbolsofecclesiasticalandfeudalpower.Eventoday,manypeoplearenotin-terestedincreatinganhistoricalawarenessofthepossibilityoffightingagainstinjustice,forfreedom,andforsolidarity.Scholarshipandpoliticaleducationcan(andshould)en-hanceandadvancethisawareness,andthearchivesdiscussedherecontainplentyofmaterialstocontributetothis.Themovementarchivescontainagreatdealofmaterialabouttheideasandpoliticalten-denciesofthepeoplewhojoinedthePDSfrom1990to1992,andthosewhojoinedDieLinkefrom2004to2007,andwhosub-sequentlyhelpedshapeitsdevelopmentinbothaprogrammaticandanhabitualsense.Themovementarchivesalsocon-tainanabundanceofinformationpertain-ingtothesepeople’sextra-parliamentarywork,presumablymorethantheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism(ADS)itself.Ofcourse,theADSisnotamovementarchive,norshoulditbecomeone.ButitwouldbeimportanttomaketheADSreceptivetotheconcernsandproblemsofthemovementarchives.Wedonothavetoimmediatelydreamofameta-databasethatcouldbefi-nancedandimplementedinthemediumtermwiththesupportoftheacademiccom-

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munity.Butsomethingsimilartothisisulti-matelygoingtobenecessary.Thewomen’sarchivesaredemonstratinghowthiscanbedonewithameta-catalogueandthedigitiza-tionofselecteddocuments.11

1  The fact that newer movements produce their legacies primarily in a digital form raises new and unresolved questions for archives, as well as for prospective research on contemporary history. These questions have been deliberately omitted from the conversation here and would warrant a text of their own.  2  An online directory can be found at http://afas-ar-chiv.de/verzeichnis-freier-archive/ or www.umwelt-bibliotheken.de . Hüttner lists 270 addresses; see Bernd Hüttner, Archive von unten. Biblio-theken und Archive der neuen sozialen Bewegungen und ihre Bestände, Neu-Ulm: 2003. For an up-to-date overview with commentary see Jürgen Bacia and Cornelia Wenzel, “Was bleibt?  Archivierung von Protesten und Widerstand seit 1968: Ein Bestandsaufnahme”, Zeitschrift für Bibliotheks-wesen und Bibliographie, 4/2018, pp. 173–81, available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.3196/186429501865425). For more references, see http://kobib.de/kg/index.php/keywords/single/58 .  3  Examples include the archives and libraries of the foundations affiliated with the party, but also facilities such as the Institut der sozialen Bewegungen in Bochum, the APO archive at the Freie Universität Berlin, and the Institut für Sozialforschung in Hamburg.  4  See, among others, “Jahr der Jahrestage, interview mit Bernd Hüttner zu Ge-schichtsarbeit”, anti-atom-aktuell, issue 180, May 2007, available at: www.anti-atom-aktuell.de/archiv/180/180jahrestage.html .  5  See the materials at www.bewegungsarchive.de   6  See http://ildb.nadir.org/   7  See www.kobib.de  8  The central “institution” for research into social movements is the Verein für Protest- und Bewegungsforschung; see www.protestinstitut.eu   9  See www.vda.archiv.net/arbeitskreise/ueberlieferungen-der-neuen-sozialen-bewegungen.html   10  “Zur Zukunft der Archive von Protest-, Frei-heits- und Emanzipationsbewegungen”, in: ibid.  11  See www.ida-dachver-band.de/ddf/ and https://www.meta-katalog.eu

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TheDeutscheFriedens-Union(GermanPeaceUnion,DFU)wasfoundedin1960inFrankfurtamMain.RenateRiemeck,aprofessorandpeaceactivistfromSouthernHesse,wasanimportantreferencepointforthisprojectbecausesheembodiedacertain“leftist”standpointthatgavehertheoppor-tunitytobeelected,evenaftertheKPDhadbeenbanned.AlthoughtheDFU’sfederaloffice,man-agedbyHeinzDreibrodt,WillivanOoyen,andHorstTrapp,waslocatedonAmster-

damerStraßeinCologne,thestateofficeinHesseplayedanimportantroleintheunion’sactivities,andmanyeventsanddemonstrationswereorganizedoutoftheFrankfurtoffice.Therewereseveralrea-sonsforthis.Foronething,therewasexcellentcontactwiththetradeunions.Forexample,theheadquartersoftheIndustrialUnionofMet-alworkers(IGMetall)andthefederalofficeoftheUnionofPersecuteesoftheNaziRe-gime(VVNBdA)werelocatedinFrankfurtamMain.InfluentialofficialsoftheGermanCommunistParty(DKP),foundedin1968,alsolivednearby.Theyoftencoordinatedwithus,mostlyinpersonalconversations,asitwassuspectedthattheirofficewasbuggedwithsurveillancedevices.TheDKPwastooweak,notflexibleenough,anddidnothaveagoodenoughimageamongthemiddleclasstosuccessfullyconvertitspol-iciesintovotes.TheDFUwascreatedinor-dertosolvethisproblemandbringtheissueofpeacetothemiddleclasses.Thus,inclosecoordinationwiththeDKP,theFriedenslistewasestablishedasaparty,inthehopethatatthepeakofthepeacemovement,apartywouldentertheBonnBundestagthatwouldrepresenttheinterestsofboththeDKPandthepeacemovement.TherewasanotherreasonwhypeoplecametogethermoreofteninFrankfurtamMain.WillivanOoyenandHorstTrappwerebasedinFrankfurt,whileHeinzDreibrodtlivedinHamburg.Forallthree,workonFridayafter-noondidnotendat4p.m.Theykeptwork-ingthroughtheweekend.

WiththeexceptionofSaarland,eachstatehadaregionalassociationandanoffice.Thus,therewereplentyofstructuresputinplaceforcoalitionwork.ThestateofficeonFrankfurt’sLersnerStraßewaslocated

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inastrategicallyconvenientplace,sothatthestaffmemberswhoworkedtherewerealsoavailablewhenneeded.Sinceeventsanddemonstrationsoftentookplaceonpublicholidaysoronweekends,itisnotsurprisingthatmanyoftheDFU’sorgan-izationalpapershadareturnaddressinFrankfurt.Unlikeatotheroffices,theoc-cupationalbancommitteeattheofficeinHesseemployedUliBreuerasafull-timestaffmemberinordertoestablishcontactswithpoliticallyinterestedpeoplewhohadnotyetbeenorganized.Otherofficeshaddesignatedemployeestohandlethismat-teraswell.Heinz-JoachimNagelwasthestatechair-manoftheDFUinHesseuntiltheDFUwasdissolvedin1990.Afterthat,hewasnolongerabletobeactivelyinvolvedduetohealthreasons,butwasavailableasacon-tactpersonforthePeaceandFutureWork-shop.2WillivanOoyenkeptthepromisemadebyHeinz-JoachimNagelandbroughttheDFUdocumentsthatwereinhishouse(thecentralstoragelocation)tothefederalarchiveinKoblenz.WillivanOoyenwasaleadingfigureinthepeacemovement;ofparticularimpor-tancewashisroleinorganizingthePeaceandFutureWorkshop,whichtookplaceattheFrankfurtUnionBuilding.LocalpeaceinitiativesandEastermarchesinHesse,theKasselPeaceCouncil,the“NowarinAfghanistan”petition,andthenationwideEastermarchinformationcentrewerejustsomeoftheactivitiesorganizedbyWillivanOoyen.Beyondthat,beginningin2008,hewasDieLinke’sparliamen-tarychairpersoninthestateparliamentinHesse.HewantedtohandoverthefilesdocumentinghisactivitiesintheDFUandasamemberofthestateparliamentin

HessetotheArchivesforDemocraticSo-cialism(ADS).AvanpickeduptheDFUdocumentsfromWillivanOoyen’sbasementanddeliveredthemtotheVerlagsgebäudedesNeuenDeutschlandinBerlin.There,formerre-gionalmanagerPeterDelispreparedthedocumentsforarchivingandcreatedin-formativelistsofallthematerialsthathadbeendelivered.SincethedocumentshadoriginallybeenfiledinCologneandFrank-furtamMaininavarietyofdifferentforms,theyfirsthadtobebroughtintoaconsist-entformat.Withalotofeffort,thedocu-mentswereputinchronologicalorder,andmultipledeliveriescouldbecleanedup.Theworkontheinventoryledtoanin-tensivestudyofthehistoryoftheDFUandkeptthememoriesofvariousactionsandactorsalive.Thedocumentsillustratehowdifferentthecommunicationchannelswereatthattime.Ifyouhadappointments,youweredifficulttoreach,cellphonesdidnotyetexist,al-thoughthereweretelephonesandtypewrit-ersinalltheoffices.SinceWillivanOoyenhadpreviouslylivedinParisandhadlivedwithaFrenchwoman,heplacedagreatdealofimportanceonmaintainingarelation-shipwiththeFrenchCommunistPartyandtheFrenchpeacemovement.Hehadverygoodcontactwiththepartyleadership,andGerman-Frenchpeacetalkswereheldannu-allyinAlsace.Beyondthat,regularworkingmeetingsalsotookplace.TheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismwaschosenbecauseofitsideologicalproximitytotheDFU.Thisguaranteesthatallthedoc-umentsremainavailabletous,whichshouldbethenorm.Thevalueofthedocumentsissupplementedbytheknowledgeofcontem-porarywitnesses.Misinterpretationswould

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beconceivablewithoutexplanationsofhowdecisionsweremade.SometimestheoldGDRsayingcanbehelpful:whobenefitsfromwhat?

CREATORS OF MEMORY

1  On the history of the DFU, see Bundesarchiv, collection B442 Deutsche Friedens-Union, Christoph Stamm, “Einleitung zum Findbuch”, Berlin 2011.  2  The Peace and Future Workshop does not see itself as a successor to the DFU. It works exclusively with volunteers on contemporary issues.

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WhenIembarkeduponthetaskofwritingmyautobiography,IwasbrieflytemptedtovisittheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism,butIultimatelyneverendedupdoingso.Anautobiographyismeanttorecordthatwhichcanbeaccessedfrompersonalmem-ory.However,aspsychologistsandlawyersknow,memoriesarenotalwaysentirelyreliable.Humanmemorycannotbecom-paredtoaphoto,sinceitisnotafaithfulrepresentationofapastevent,butratheranactiveprocess—anactofproduction.

Inotherwords,theactofrememberingistheproductionofamemory.Memoriesof-tengetembellished,ormoreimportantly:coherenceisforceduponthem.Thisishowmemoryunintentionallyandunconsciouslydeviatesfromanexactrenderingofanevent.Confrontingthedifferencebetweenmymemoryandhoweventsarerecordedinarchiveswouldcertainlyhavebeeninter-estingformeasapersonalexperience,butitwouldhavemadewritingdifficult.Autobiographiesarenotentirelyuninterest-ingtohistorians;theyareexamplesoftextsthathistorianscanputintorelationtotheirownresearch.Anotherfascinatingthingaboutautobiographiesishowtheyallowthespiritofatimetoberelived,especiallywhenthezeitgeistisonlyeverexpressedthroughindividuals.Butautobiographiesarenottextsthatcanbepassedoffashis-toricaltracts.Ifsomeonewantedtowriteascholarlybiographyaboutaperson,anau-tobiographywouldprobablynotbetheirfirstsource.Newspaperarticleswouldprobablybemoreimportantforthistask,regardlessofhowthepersonisportrayedtherein.Thefilesstoredinvariousarchives,notleastofallthematerialsfromthePDSandDieLinke,wouldalsobeimportantifthepersonwerealeftist.Thedifferentarchiveshavemoreorlesstooffer,dependingonthetopicofinterest.Ofcourse,oneshouldnottakewhatisar-chivedliterally.Thearchiveisorganizedknowledge.Butwhatkindofknowledge?Andwhatorganizationalprinciplesareatwork?Agoodhistorianwouldneverbelievewhatiswritteninanyoldfile.Theywouldalsoalwaysworktodeterminethecredibilityofthefile.Thisiswhattheterm“sourcecrit-icism”refersto.Moreover,thestructureofthearchivealwaysprovidesapre-interpre-tationofwhatitarchives.

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Finally,regardlessofeverythingthathasbeensaidsofar,thequestionalwaysarisesastowhataneventis.TheexecutionofLouisXVIiscertainlyanhistoricalevent.Whatheateordidnoteatthedaybefore,however,isperhapsoflittlehistoricalinter-est.Historyisnotsimplythecollectionofanyoldfacts,butratheraninvestigationofcertainevents.Thereisalwaysinterestandrelevanceforthelatter.ThefactthatLouisXVIwasexecutedisarelevantfactbecauseitmakesclearhowresoluteFrance’sdeci-siontoturnawayfromthemonarchywasatthattime.Anditisinterestingbecauseourdemocraticsocietiesshouldatleasthaveaninterestintheirowngenesis.Thisishowfactsturnintoevents.Thatiswhywecan-notknowwhetherweourselveswillachievehistoricalsignificance;atbestwecanonlyclaimit.Itisonlywhenotherslookbackatusthathistoryisconstituted.Thushistory—boththatwhichiswrittenandthatwhichhas“happened”—isnevermerelyacomponentofanarchive.Butthearchivedoeshaveanimportantverificationfunction.Withoutatranscriptofthepartyconference,forexample,mythscouldeasilybeformed.Forrougly50years,theminutesoftheKPD’sfoundingconferencewerecon-

sideredlost.Itwasnotuntil1968thatthehistorianHermannWeberwasabletopres-enthisdiscoveryoftheminutes.Andsuchathingreallyisavaluablefind.Muchcanbesaidin50years,agreatmanystoriescanbetold,butwhoistheretokeeplookingattheminutesofapartyconference?Itispreciselynotessuchasthesethatformthebasisforthetirelessworkofdismantlingmyths.Atonepoint,however,IregretnothavingbeenintheArchivesforDemocraticSocial-ismwhenIwrotemyautobiography.Therewasameetingofthepresidiumofthepartyexecutiveboard(Ihadnotbeenthepartychairforverylongatthattime)andIgavealettertothecommittee,whichIwishedtohavesenttothepartymembers.LotharBiskythenrequestedthatIbesenthomeimmediatelyandthatInotreturnuntilIhadsleptfor48hours.Healsorequestedthattheletterbedestroyedimmediately.Unfor-tunately,IcannotrememberwhatitwasthatIhadwritteninthatletterthathadcausedsuchareaction.Iassumethattheletterisir-retrievablylost.Andthereareindeedworsethings.Butperhapsitisnotlost.Perhapsitstillexistssomewhere.IfIhadvisitedthear-chives,Iwouldatleastknowwhetherornotthisdraftletterstillexisted.

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IfIwantedtowriteabouttheimportanceofpreservingandsecuringdocuments,vesti-gesandtracesofa“left-winghistory”,ab-outthe“memoryofthedefeated”(MichelRagon),towhichweandourhistorieshavetoooftenbelongedandcontinuetobelong,thenIwouldneedtorecountseveralstoriessimultaneously.Theresultwouldbeacaco-phonyofmemories,inwhichanindividual’sveryownpersonalstoryabouttheirfamilyhistorywouldbeinterwovenagainandagainwiththe“bigger”history—sometimes

evenfusedtogether,causingimmediatedi-sorientation.WhendidIlearnhowimport-antitwastowritemyownhistory?Asithappens,Ilearnedthisratherlate.Yetwithoutbeingawareofit,Ihadbeenpartofthisleft-wingcounter-historyfromthetimeIwasinschool,startingfromwhenwetooktothestreetswithourownversionofFridaysforFutureinoutrageattheatomicarmament,thePershing-II,SS-20rockets,andtheNATODouble-TrackDecision,andwereadmonishedbytheschooladministra-tionforconductinga“peacecircle”outsidetheschoolgroundsduringclass.Backthen,morethan350,000peopleprotestedontheRhinemeadowsinBonn.Butitwasnotuntil19December1999—Iwas34yearsoldatthetime—thatsomethingbecameentirelycleartomethatIhadpreviouslyonlysus-pected:Iwaspartofahistorythatothersspokeandwroteaboutinahostileway.Itwastheywhohadestablishedhegemonyoverthemeaningofthishistoryandcausedourcounter-storyoftheeventstobeerasedfrompublicview,orbedepictedasacari-cature.On19Decemberofthatyear,1,000membersoftheBerlinpolicestormedtheMehringhofsocialcentreonGneisenauer-straße.MembersofSEKpolicetacticalunitsarrested—alongwithseveralmorepeopleinFrankfurt—themanagerofMeringhofandmyfriendandcolleagueHarald,withmachinegunsdrawn.TheentirebuildinginKreuzbergwastornapart,allthedoorsbro-kenopenandthehollowspacesbetweenwallsandstaircaseswereopenedupinthesearchforexplosivedevices.Astatewitnesshadindicatedtopolicethatexplosiveswerehiddeninthebuilding.Thisisalsowhythepoliceraidoccurredsoshortlybeforetheturnofthecentury:theleniencyprogrammeforstatewitnessesthatwasineffectatthe

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timewasduetoexpireon31December.Buteventhoughthewitnessinquestionwasconnectedtoaremote-controlledro-botcameraduringtheraid,notacrumbofexplosivematerialwasfoundinMeringhof.Theraidleftusinastateofutterdespair.

Iwroteatextatthetime,whichwasnicelyprefacedwithaHölderlinquotation—asbefittedtheoffspringofaneducatedmid-dle-classprofessor—,underthetitle“Wheredangerlies...”,andposteditontheinternetandintheHamburgscenenewspaperOff limits.Inthearticle,Iattemptedtodiscernwhysuchacompletelydisproportionateamountofeffortandviolencehadbeenemployed,whenafewspecialistscouldhavequicklydeterminedthattherewerenoexplosives.Iwrote:“Butofcourse,suchadiscreetprocedurewouldnothaveelicitedthedesiredsideeffectthatthepolicecouldappeartobeintheserviceofapublicthatwasalreadytremblinginfearofthemillen-niumattackplotsandonceagainlocatethespectreof‘terrorism’wheretheywantedittobe:ontheleft.”Atthetime,thescenewasinastateofemergency,paralyzedbythestate’sraidsonourstructuresalmostadecadeaftertheendofthephaseof“armedstruggle”carriedoutbytheRevolutionaryCells(RZ).Weorganizedsolidarityforthefiveprisonersheldatthetimeandtriedtocounterthenarrativethatwasbeingdis-seminatedbythemainstreammediawithamorenuancedversionofevents.“Wemustwriteourownhistory”,anoldercolleaguewehadworkedcloselywithimploredus.LeadinguptothependingcriminaltrialinMoabit,wepublishedZitronenfalteR.Wedistributedreadinganddiscussionmate-rialsfromthevariousscenearchivesanddistributedthemtomanywhowerenot

yetfamiliarwiththehistoryoftheRevolu-tionaryCells(includingmyself).Finally,weremovedthetwoblackvolumesofFrüchte des Zorns(FruitsofWrath)fromthebook-shelfinourapartment,wheretheyhadbeenstandingidleasdecorationsorbookendsfortoolong.ThepublishinghouseInforma-tions-DienstzurVerbreitungunterbliebenerNachrichten(IDVerlag)hadcarriedoutthehonourableworkofpublishingthesevol-umes,whichhadgivenustheopportunitytoreconstructthehistoryoftheRevolu-tionaryCellsandtorelateittothepoliciesofthefederalgovernmentduringthetimetheRevolutionaryCellswereactive,andtothepoliciesthatwerecurrentatthetime:“Inthepresentsituationofspeechlessness,however,averystrongneedfordiscussionandtransmissionofhistoryandeventscanbefeltinallcorridors,especiallyamongtheyouth.Forthesecontemporariesitwillbeinstructivetoproceedbyreadingtheex-planationsandcorrespondingbackgroundliterature.SuddenlythememoryofKemalCemalAltun,ofthescandalousdecisionsondeportationsintorturestatesbytheFed-eralCourtofJustice(BGH),…thememoryofthefireinpolicecustodyatAugustaplatzinBerlin…inwhichsixprisonerssetforde-portationweretorturouslyburnedtodeathinanovercrowdedcell,theso-calledBerlinholethroughwhichmanyrefugeesandmi-grantsfoundtheirwaytoWesternEuropeandwhichtheFRGtriedtoclosebywayofallpossiblemeans,andtheemerginginstru-mentsofdefenceagainstrefugees,whicharestillfamiliartoustodayinanidealisedway,suchastheCentralRegisterofForeignNationals(AZR)”,myarticlesaid.

AnyonebornasawhiteGermaninthiscountryisboundbytheirancestrytothe

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historyofNationalSocialism,theutterbe-trayalofcivilizedvaluesthatwastheHol-ocaust,andthewarsofextermination.Inmanyfamilies,somewhereinthecavitiesoftheirmemory,inattics,kneewalls,andcellars,therewereboxes,crates,andcasescontainingletters,documents,photos,andotherartefactsfromthethousandyearsbe-tween1933and1945,whichhadsurvivedthelengthystretchoftimesincetheendoftheNaziregime.MalteLudin’simpressivedocumentaryfilm2 or 3 Things I Know Ab-out Himiscentredaroundonesuchwoodenbox,andwhatthisboxrevealstothedirectorabouthisfather,whowasamemberoftheexterminationeliteoftheThirdReich.Itisnowonderthattheseboxeswerenotopeneduntiltheendofthe20thcentury,givingwaytoanewgenreinliteratureandart:workingthroughone’sfamilialpastandinterrogatingandconfrontinghowtheperpetratorsareentangledwiththeirgrandchildren.Simplybecausetheyhadgrownupenoughtoex-posetabooedconnectionswiththeirownfamilyhistory.FiveyearsaftertheeventsinBerlin,thesamethinghappenedtome,butitconcernedmygrandfather.

Historycatchesupwithyouagainandagain,andarchiving,publishing,editing,orthenewformatofpostingleft-wingcontenton-linecertainlyinvolvesrisks.InthetextImen-tionedabove,Ialsowrotethefollowing:“Soallthatremainsispersonalaccess:theau-thor,forexample,hasnotbeenconcernedwithany‘militantactions’intheFederalRepublicofGermany,sincehefoundthesetoberathersuspicious,andyethestum-bledthroughcloudsofteargasandwasabsorbedbythem,hisopengazedrowned.Admittedly,itwasoften‘morethanjustse-cretjoy’thatheandthosearoundhimatthe

timefeltafteranumberofexcellentactions,especiallywhentheydamagedproperty.”Atthattime,IwasthinkingabouttheattacksonconstructionmachinesinWackersdorf,whereFranzJosefStrauß’s“nuclearrepro-cessingplant”wastobebuilt,orofthefactthattheRevolutionaryCellshadpreventedasupermarket frombeingbuiltonthegroundsoftheformerRavensbrückcon-centrationcampwithanattack.Thenuclearreprocessingplantdoesnotexist,theruinsofthesupermarketcanstillbeseentodayinFürstenburg/Havel.Butsuchstatements,especiallywithreferencetothetiresomedebatearoundGöttingerMescalero,havenotbeenforgivenbytheGermanfederalgovernmentanditspopulation.Left-wingterrorismcontinuestofunctionasasourceofnationaltrauma,anddeclaringenemieshasaunifyingeffectthatstrengthenstheco-hesionofsociety.Inthefollowingyears,thistinysnippetfromthearchivestwicecostmemyjob.Andin2007thearticleearnedmetherefusalofac-creditationasafreelancejournalistfortheG8summitinHeiligendamm:TheFederalOfficefortheProtectionoftheConstitutionhadidentifiedmeasoneofthe“dirtydozen”journalistswhoweredeniedaccesstothehigh-securitywingaroundtheGrandHotelHeiligendamm.Twolawsuitsagainstthis“sovereigndiscretization”(JürgenSeifert)beforetheCologneregionalcourthouseendedsuccessfully;thecourtdeclaredmyostracismtobeillegalandtheninstructedthefederalagencytodeletetheinformationaboutmethathadbeencollectedoverthecourseoftenyears.

Thefactthatthisdomesticsecretservice,actingasafatallegalguardianofthe“do-mesticsecurity”,hasapproachedmetime

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andtimeagainprobablyhastodowithmyjournalisticresearchworkasananti-fascist.AnyonewhotalksaboutNazisinGermanycannotremainsilentaboutthedomesticse-cretservice.Since4November2011attheverylatest,ithasnolongerbeenpossibletodenythisconnection.Toalargeextent,thisknowledgeandthesealarmingfind-ingsstemfromanti-fascistarchivesandthequasi-scientificandincorruptibleresearchofananti-fascist—inthebestsenseoftheword—counterintelligence,whichalwayskeepstrackoftheinvolvementofstateac-torsinthenetworksoftheGermanNaziscene.ConcerningtheNationalSocialistUnderground(NSU)complex,butalsomorerecentlywiththemurderofKassel’smu-nicipal-oversightpresidentWalterLübckeon2June2019,itwasAntifathatwasabletopresentvalidandexplosiveinformation,oftenexclusively,earlyon.AnexpertreportfromthefederalofficeofthenationalisticpartyAlternativeforGermany(AfD)tookinformationfromthesameAntifasources,whichitclassifiedas“left-wingextremist”initsannualreports.

Evenmyageinggrandmother’slastapart-mentstillcontainedtheboxthatshehadhadacarpentermakeforherinwhichtokeepmygrandfather’ssacredletters.I,thehistorianamongherninegrandchildren,wasoncesettoinheritthisboxandwasal-lowedtoopenit.Shortlybeforeherdeathattheageof94,shehadtriedtohavetheboxdestroyedandliterally“disposedof”,forshesuspectedwhatkindofeffectmygrandfa-ther’s600lettersfromFranceandtheSo-vietUnionmighthaveonthepersonreadingthem.Thisboxalsocontainedabout1,000ofherownletterstoherhusbandHeinrich.Hehadregularlysentbundlesofcarefully

numberedletterstoherathomebeforehelosttrackoftheminStalingradinlateJanu-ary1943.Itthenturnedouttobequitediffer-entfromwhatIhadthought,becausetothisdayIhavenotprocessedtheseletters;theircontentswerefartoodisturbing.AtthetimeIthoughttomyselfthattheGermanperpe-tratorshadreceivedsufficientspacefortheirviewofthingsandtheirversionofhistoryinthedecadessincetheendofthewar.Theirnarrativehadovershadowedtheinterpreta-tionoftheGermanpastandhelpedcreatetheimageofthe“immaculateshieldoftheWehrmacht”,whichcontrastedwiththere-alityofthecrimesoftheSS,Gestapo,andSicherheitsdienst.Thetrend-settingexhibi-tionontheCrimes of the Wehrmachtinthemid-1990shelpedputanendtothisimage.

ItwasonlymuchlaterthatIcametotrulyun-derstandtheenormousscaleoftheShoahandGermany’sspreesofdestruction.Inschool,thesubjectwasfobbedoff,leavingmewithverylittlereliableknowledge.Inad-ditiontothis,Iwasraisedinanenvironmentwithafairdealof“Führer”fixation—amongothers,booksfromthehistoricaldenialistJoachimC.Festwerecobbledtogetherwiththoseof“AlbertSpeer”and“Hitler”,onourbookshelvesathome.Itwasonlytripstothescenesofthecrimes,beyondAuschwitzintothebackwoodsofPoland,sometimesaccompaniedbytheestimableBildungs-werkStanisławHantzInstitute,thatmadeitunmistakablyclearwhattheexterminationofmillionsofJewsandmanyotherpeople,carriedoutpartlythroughindustrialdivisionoflabourandefficiencyorbyunimaginablycruelmassexecutionsintheSovietUnion,meant.ItwasonlyinrecenttimesandalsoonlyaftertheUStelevisionseries“Holo-caust”hadmadeitswayintothecosyliving

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roomsofWestGermanyattheendofthe1970sthatlargenumbersoftestimoniesfromsurvivorsandcontemporarywitnessesbegantoappear.Inanatmospherecharac-terizedbythreateninglysuccessfulattemptstodownplaythehistoryofGermany’scrimesagainsthumanityas“birdshit”(AfDleaderAlexanderGauland)inthelongstreamofhis-toryandthedesiresharedbymanytoonceagainbeproud“oftheachievementsofGer-mansoldiersinthetwoworldwars”(moreprecisely)beyondaGerman“cultofguilt”,thesetestimonieshavemadeitpossibleforthoseeagertoknowmoretodiscoverthewholetruth.Perhapswiththelatepublica-tionofRaulHilberg’smonumentalworkThe Destruction of the European JewsinGermanintheearly1980sandClaudeLanzmann’sdeeplyharrowingnine-hourdocumentaryShoahin1985,somethingbeganwhichisfarfromoverandwhichisbasedinpartondoc-umentsbelievedtohavebeenlost,suchastheunsettlingmemoirsofsurvivorKalmenWewryktitledTo Sobibor and Back,ofwhichaGermantranslationwasfirstpublishedinNovember2019.AftertheconcentrationcampswereliberatedfromGermanforces,knowledgeaboutthesufferinganddeathofmillionswasdiscoveredinsecretmessagesthatpeoplehadhastilynoteddownduringtheongoingexterminationprocess,andhadoftenburiedorhiddenatthesitesoftheexe-cutionsshortlybeforetheirownmurder,outoftheexistentialfeelingofwitnessingtheunthinkableandindescribableandneedingtosetitinwritingforsomekindofposterity.Muchofit,whethertheRingelblumArchiveintheWarsawGhettoorthemessagesfromtheinsideoftheexterminationchambers,wasquicklyhiddeninmortalfearinthein-fernooftheincinerators,andtodayformsthebasisofknowledgeabouttheShoah.Much

ofwhatpeoplecouldhaveleftbehindthen,whetherintentionallyoraccidentally,disap-pearedwiththeirexecutionorwiththede-structionofthetracesofthemassmurders.Thelittlewehavecanbeconsideredaguar-antorofthetruth.

Theknowledgeofverymanyperpetrators,ontheotherhand,hassurvivedwiththemand—contrarytotheallegedtabooingofthesubject—hasflowedintothestreamofpost-warGermanhistoryinanheroicortrivializedform,whichcharacterizesthehalf-heart-ednessofthemuch-praised“comingtotermswiththeGermanpast”andformsthebreedinggroundfortheresurgenceofna-tionalisticideologiesinourtime.SowhatdoIdowiththelettersofmyperpetratorgrand-father,whowasdefinitelyaNaziandalsoaferventanti-Semite,justlikemygrand-mother?WhenIbegantoworkonthisam-bivalentheritage,thebiggestsurprisewasnotthatmygrandfatherwasaNazi.Thisisquiteclear,butmorepassiminhisletters.WhatwasmostdisturbingaboutthelettersIhadreadatthetimeissomethingelseen-tirely:theyarehighlyeroticlettersthathehadwrittentohiswife,mygrandmother,fullofsexualdesireandphysicallonging.ItwasonlyonceIhadreadDagmarHerzog’sexcellentbookThe Politicization of LustthatIwasabletounderstandthesesurprisinglypornographicscenes,whichcertainlydeter-minethetoneoftheletters,andtoadjustmyimageofmygrandfatherasacruel,asexualNazidisciplinedtobebody-phobic,andthentoputthereadingofthelettersasideinastateofirritation.

Thesurveillancestate,whichkeepsado-mesticsecretservicecalledtheVerfassungs-schutzinordertowatchoutfor“anybody

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whodoessomethingcriminalatnight”(Ex-trabreit),andwhichIhardlytookanynoticeofforalongtime,hasbeenwithmesincetheencounterdescribedabove—literally.TheroleoftheVerfassungsschutz(protectionoftheconstitution)intheNSUcomplexhascompletelystrengthenedmyopinionthatthe“secrets”and“secretservice”ofthese16statesecretservices,plusthefederalof-ficeposeathreattoanopenanddemocraticsociety.Afterthedisasterofthefirstpro-ceedingstobantheNPDin2003andwiththeuncoveringoftheNSU’sterrornetworkin2011,itmusthavebecomecleartoeveryhalfwayattentivepersoninthecountrythattheVerfassungsschutzwaspartof,ratherthanthesolutiontoamassiveproblemwithright-wingstructuresthatarepreparedtocommitactsofterrorinGermany.Thegrowthandde-velopmentoftheNazistructuresinThuringia,forexample,wouldsimplybeunthinkablewithoutthelavishfinancialsupportandma-terialcontributionsofthelocalstateoffice’sundercoveragentTinoBrandt.Ithasbeenproventhattherewereatleast40informantsplacedwithintheNSUanditssupportnet-work,whichshouldmakecleartoeventhemostlaw-abidingpeoplewhatkindofahor-ribleinstitutionwearedealingwithhere.Butnoteventhefactthatthenon11November2011(11/11/11)—sevendaysaftertheNSUhadbeenexposed—aheadofdepartmentinthefederaloffice(presumablyatthebe-ginningofthecarnivalat11:11)orderedthedestructionofallfilesinthefederalofficepertainingtotheNSU,therebyviolatingtheconstitution.Althoughtheheadofdepart-mentwassentenced—afterrelativesofoneofthetenmurdervictimsoftheNSUsuedhim—topay3,000eurosfor“breachofcus-tody”,theproceedingswerediscontinued,despitethefactthathehadbeenfalselyas-

sertingsincetheverybeginningthatthefileshadbeenshreddedforreasonsoftimeanddataprotection.ItwasonlymuchlaterthathewasconfrontedwithhisownstatementbeforethesecondparliamentaryNSUinves-tigativecommittee,whichhehadmadetotheFederalCriminalPoliceOfficeandwhichstatedthathehadhadtheinformationabouttheNaziinformantsrecruitedinThuringiaaspartof“OperationRennsteig”collectedanddestroyedspecificallyandinordertoavertrepercussionsfromtheauthorities.Butthisoriginalsininitiatedalivelytrendofdocu-mentdestructioninotherstateinstitutionsdealingwithcriminalprosecutionandtheVerfassungsschutz,sothatapproximately400NSU-relatedfileshaddisappearedafteraone-yearperiod.Butevenafterthegrandioseannouncementofamoratoriumonfilede-struction,thedestructionordisappearanceofrelevantarchivalmaterialsoccurredagainandagainthroughoutthecourseoftheNSUtrialattheHigherRegionalCourtinMunich,whichlastedoverfiveyears.Inthosecaseswherethesecretserviceauthoritiescouldnotavoidhandingovertheirfiles,however,thisdutyofdisclosureoftheir“workresults”tothesovereign,whichistosaytheparlia-mentsatthefederalandstatelevels,wasmarkedbyobstruction,inexplicabledelays,arrogantrejectionofthedemandsofthein-vestigativecommittees,andeventheexten-sivesanitizationofentirefiles.InthecourseoftheworkoftheHessianNSUinvestigativecommitteeinWiesbaden,theMinistryoftheInteriorevenresortedtoblockingaclassifiedinternalreportonconnectionsfromHessetoThuringiainconnectionwiththeNSUforanoutrageousandextremelyunusual120years.However,duetoprotests,thisclassi-ficationwasreducedto30years,andDirkLaabs—basicallytheonlytrulyinvestigative

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journalistwithinthebourgeoispress—atleastfiledalawsuittodisclosesomedetailedinformationfromthereport,suchashowof-tentheallegedmurdererofWalterLübkeandhisallegedaccomplicearementionedintheofficialtext.Thefactthatthesuspectismen-tionedeleventimesonceagainreinforcesthepressingsuspicionthatexplosivefind-ingsandconnectionsarebeingdeliberatelyconcealed.Butasthesecretservicecoordi-natorintheFederalChancellery,Klaus-DieterFritsche,whohimselfwasVicePresidentoftheFederalOfficefortheProtectionoftheConstitutionwhiletheNSUwasactive,saidsobeautifully:“Statesecretsthatunderminegovernmentactionmustnotbemadepub-lic.”Asmallanecdoteinpassing:afterhisretirement,Fritscheofficiallybecameanad-visortotheright-wingnationalformerAus-trianMinisteroftheInteriorHerbertKicklfortherestructuringoftheVerfassungsschutzinAustria.

Ihopethatmyverypersonalreflectionsonthesubjectofarchiveshavemadecleartheimportanceofsecuringandpreservingdoc-umentsandarchivalmaterialsofallkinds,aswellasthesensitivehandlingofthepropertycollected.Iemphasizetheimportanceofthisnotonlyformyown,left-winghistoriog-raphy,butalsoforanykindofinvestigationintosocialandpoliticalconflicts,ruptures,andupheavals,intostateandwarcrimes;asforinvestigationsintothereconstructionofwhathasbeenthwarted,smoothedout,liedabout,andfalsifiedinanationalfrenzy,outofauthoritariandogmatism,orinsomeotherwayguidedbyspecialinterests.Forthesereasons,wemustvisitarchives,col-lectionpoints,libraries,viewtheirdatabasesanddigitalvolumes,andincorporatethemintoourwork.Evenifonecanonlyeverap-proachthe“wholetruth”,weareobligedoutofourowninteresttoatleastattempttoapproachit.

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Iliketolookback,andnotinanger,eventhoughsomeofmymistakesbotherme.Retrospectioniscrucialwhenitcomestounderstandingthepresent.PerhapsDieLinkeengagesintoolittleretrospectionthesedays,choosinginsteadtofocustoomuchonday-to-dayoperations.Thepro-cessofretrospectionislikelytoconjureupverydifferentimagesandmemoriesintheEastandWest;afterall,anentirestateandsocialorderwerecollapsingintheEastjustastheWestwasbourgeoning.Thisisapro-

foundhistoricalturningpoint.Meanwhile,thefallofactuallyexistingsocialismhasleftfarmoremournersthansurvivingdepen-dentsinitswake.IntheWest,therewerepoliticalstrugglesthathavenotledtothedesiredoutcomeofradicalsocialchange,butstillleavetheirmarkonpeopletoday.Inmylife,bothGermaniescollidewithoneanother.IntheWest,atanyrate,whichiswhereIlived—untilthefalloftheWall,IprimarilyresidedinHamburg,andspentanumberofyearsintheRuhrdistrict—butalsointheEast.Afternineyearsofprimaryschooleducation,itwascomradesfromtheGDRwhograntedmeaccesstotheworldofartandcultureandalsoopenedthedoortotheSovietUnionforme,whichwasinteg-raltoEuropeansecurityandpeace—justasthedoortoRussiaistoday.WiththehelpoftheGDR,wewereabletoorganizeclassicalmusicconcerts,concertsforworkersintheWest.ThelargeexhibitioninHamburgab-outtheartworkofWilliSittewasasmuchapoliticalundertakingasthestudycircleinwhichweexploredthewonderfulworldofworksbyMarxandEngels.Myhistoricalawarenesswasenhanceddur-ingthestruggleagainstrearmamentandthegreatsilencethatcloakedEuropebe-tween1933and1945.Igotintostrifewithmyfather—andwithalmosteveryoneinhisgeneration—becauseIwantedtoknowabouthowtheyhadbehavedduringtheperiodoffascistrule.Itwasnottheperpe-tratorsorfellowtravellerswhospokeaboutwhathadhappened,butratherthosewhohadbeenpersecutedbytheNaziregime.Isuspectedthattheywerecommunists;theirpartyhadalreadybeenbanned.ItwasfromthemthatIacquiredthemotto“Neveragainfascism,neveragainwar”,whichledtomybeingkickedoutoftheSPDandits

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youthorganizationDieFalken(TheFalcons)in1961,aroundthesametimethatthewallwasbuilt.

CODENAME: CHRISTIAN HAMMERERIthenstartedtellingeverybodythatifIweretojoinapartyeveragain,itwouldonlybetheCommunistPartyofGermany(KPD).Atsomepoint,mywishwasgranted.Myen-trytotheirrankswasmarkedwithasmallceremony.Mytwoguarantorsandthepartysecretaryarenolongeralive,butIthinkbackonthemwithgratitude.AtoneofthefirstpartyconferencestowhichIwasinvited,whichtookplaceinEastBerlin,somebodyaskedmewhatmynamewas.Myanswer,“WolfgangGehrcke”,triggeredlooksofhor-roranddismay.ItwasthenthatIwasaskedwhetherIhadacodename.Ididn’thaveone,andhadtomakeoneuponthespot.Theonlythingthatcametomindwasmymother’smaidenname,Hammerer.Inthelistofthoseworkingundercover,thenameChristianwasnotyettaken.Fromnowon,IwouldbeknownasChristianHammererinthesecircles.Undermyalias,Idesignedleaflets,spokeatrallies,and—somethingthatwasveryimportantforme—wasin-volvedindevelopingtheKPD’syouthpolicy,whichledin1968totheestablishmentoftheSocialistGermanWorkersYouth(SDAJ).Iwasinvolvedinitsmanagement,andwasitschairpersonforanumberofyears.

EVERYTHING IS NOTHING WITHOUT PEACEButbeforehand,Ihadotherpartyobjectivestofulfil—namelytoparticipateinthepeacemovement.Atthetime,themovementwaschieflyconstitutedbytheAldermas-tonmarchesconductedbytheanti-nuclear

activists,atraditionthathadbeenbroughtbackfromBritainbyKonradTempel,whowasaQuaker,andhispartnerHelgaStolle.ThefirstAldermastonmarchtobecon-ductedinGermanytookplacein1961overathree-dayperiodandtravelledfromHohne,anareanearthevillageofBelsenandtheBergen-Belsenconcentrationcamp,overtheLüneburgHeath,toHamburg.Ihelpedorganizethemarch.Iwasenthralledbyit,perhapsevenbecauseofits“loneliness”;wewerebutafewhundredpeople,andoursupporters.Sleepinginsidebarnsandwind-mills,withawholelotofloveinbetween—thatwasratherenticing.Anti-fascism and the struggle for peace are inextricably linked. At the Ohlsdorf ceme-tery in Hamburg, there is a memorial grove for deceased and murdered anti-fascists. The memorial for Ernst Thälmann, whose board of trustees I worked on for a number of years, should also be seen in this context. Thälmann was murdered at the Buchenwald concentration camp; the plight of the German working class is reflected in his life and death. One can reproach him for his strategic mista-kes, but the fact remains that he gave his life in the fight against fascism.

NO MASS MOVEMENT WITHOUT CULTUREInthebeginning,thepeacemovementwasalsoayouthmovement;itbecameabigculturalmovementwithcommunistsrightattheheartofit.Withoutculture,therecanbenomassmovement,andviceversa:massmovementsaresimultaneouslythebreedinggroundforculture,andthatwhichityields.Atthetime,therewereartistslikeHannesWader,FranzJosefDegenhardt,DieterSüverkrüp,thegreatFasiaJansen,whohadalreadytakentothestreetsdur-

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ingthefirstAldermastonmarch,cabaretartistslikeHannsDieterHüsch,painterslikeAdolfWriggersandWillyColberg,orcartoonistslikeStefanSiegert.Thesedaysthereareothernamesforit,buttothisday,thepeacemovementremainsaculturalmovement,asseeninRamstein;(still)onlysomewhatsmallerthanthemovementsagainsttheemergencypowers,ortheNATOmissiledecision.IwillneverforgetthepeacedemonstrationthattookplaceinBonnin1981anddrewacrowdof350,000;Iwasamemberofthecentralactioncom-mitteethatwasinchargeofpreparingforthedemonstration.Artistswerewellawareofwhattheyweredoingwhentheybecameapartofthesemovements,andsometimesadrivingforce:theywerecutbytheestablishedinstitutions,andthisisstillthecasetothisday.Forex-ample,inthemusicindexkeptbytheNord-deutscherRundfunk(NDR),therewerein-structionsfiledunderthenameFranzJosefDegenhardt:“Onlywithauthorizationfromtheartisticdirector.”Brilliantartistsweretobesilenced,similartowhathadbeendoneintheUSAunderMcCarthy.Buthere,justasintheUSA,therewerepeoplewhodis-coveredandrevealedtheseunderhandedschemes;inthe“case”ofDegenhardtandtheNDR,thepeopleinquestionweremem-bersofthelocalDKPworksgroup.

Today,wecanchoosetoeithermournthisbreadthofpoliticsandpoliticizedsociallife,orwecanmakeattemptstopickupthethread.Doing this, to name just two names: artists like Diether Dehm, whose popular songs are also poignant and moving, or the visual artist Heidrun Hegewald, whose mag-nificent works the official art establishment would like to retroactively remove from GDR culture.

POLITICAL PERSECUTIONThepoliticalleftinWestGermanyneveren-joyedparticularlyextensiveperiodsofres-pitefromdiscriminationorpersecution.Asmanyas200,000preliminaryproceedingswerelaunchedinconnectionwiththe1956banningoftheKPD,whichoftenledtopeo-plelosingtheirjobsandtheir“goodrepu-tation”;asmanyas10,000peoplereceivedprisonsentences(amongsome6,000to7,000KPDmembersatthetime).Thenin1971,undertheBrandtgovernment,profes-sionalbanscameintoeffectwithunlimitedspyingintheformof3.5million(!)enquiriestotheVerfassungsschutz(OfficeforthePro-tectionoftheConstitution)aboutthe“loy-altytotheconstitution”exhibitednotonlybythoseapplyingforthecivilservice,butalsobyformeremployees.Postmenwerefoundtobetoodisloyaltobeentrustedwiththetaskofdeliveringletters,andhonestanduprightcustomsofficersweredeclaredun-reliableanduntrustworthy.Andtherewerealsoprofessionalbansthatwereintendedtokeepanentiregenerationofyoung,politi-callyaware,left-wingintellectualsinvolvedinthe1968movementoutofschoolsanduniversities.WillyBrandtlatermadethemistakeofreferringtothemoveastheRa-dikalenerlass(RadicalsDecree).Buttothisday,thoseaffectedarestillfightingfortheirrehabilitation.Defendingdemocracy,takingpartinthepeacemovement,maintaininganopenmindtowardspoliticalopponents,beingin-volvedintradeunions—Iincorporatealloftheseelementsfrommypastintomypolit-icalworkinthepresent.IalsoincorporatemyloveforCuba,Nicaragua,ElSalvador,andtheirliberationmovements.Somecom-radestravelledfromHamburgtoCubatohelpwithconstructionefforts,wherethey

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alsoharvestedsugarcane;inNicaragua,theyhelpedwithelectrification;inElSal-vador,inacollaborativeactionwithothers,wesupportedtheestablishmentofarebelradiostationinthefightagainsttheright-wing-banditleadership,and,yes,wealsocollectedmoneyforweaponsfortheliber-ationmovementFarabundoMartíNationalLiberationFront(FMLN).

STANDING TALL AS WE WALK THROUGH THE GATEFormsofactionfromtheextra-parliamentarymovementsuchasblockadesandoccupa-tionsmanagedtofindtheirwayintothepo-liticalstrugglesoftradeunions;oneexam-pleofthisisthefighttopreservetheKruppsteelworkssituatedintheareasofRhein-hausen,vonHoesch,Westfalenhütte,andUnioninDortmund,andthelargeshipyardHowaldtswerke-DeutscheWerft(HDW)inHamburg.Itwasalwaystheworkersinthecompaniesthemselveswhotooktheinitia-tivetoconductactionsofthiskind,butitwaspossibleforthoseoutsidethecompaniestosupportthem.Agreatdealofsupportcamefromartists,thewomen’smovement,whichhaddevelopedparalleltothelabourmove-ment,andfromchurchcircles.Iwasdirectlyinvolvedinalloftheaforementionedcom-panyactions,inparticulartheoccupationofHDWinHamburg.Iwasinvolvedinanactionwithasmallcommunistactiongroup:afterconsultingwithourcolleaguesontheworkscouncil,wesailedacrosstheElbebynightandboardedadrydock.ThisinvolvedagreatdealofeffortonmypartbecauseIamafraidofheights,andfromthewater,adrydockisastallasaskyscraper.Chained

together,wemanagedtoholdoutforafewhourswithourbannerofsolidarity,butthesecurityguardswereequippedwithbigboltcuttersandhadburlymentotakeusaway.IwillneverforgettheimageoftheHDWworkerswho,afterlosingthebattle,lefttheirfactoryinaprotestmarchcarryingabanneremblazonedwiththewordsStanding tall as we walk through the gate.Thenotionofstandingtallaswewalkthroughthegatestillpersiststothisday;failingtoachieveagoalisonething,butnotgivingintocoercionisanotherthingen-tirely.

MY FILES SHOULD BE MADE PUBLICItislikelythatyoucanreadaboutallofthisandmuchmoreinthefilethattheVerfas-sungsschutzcreatedaboutme,whichcon-tainsmorethan10,000sheetsofpaper.Iwantthisfiletobemadepublic.Everyoneshouldbeabletoreadwhatthespookshavecollectedaboutme.WhileIwasintheprocessofattemptingtoobtain(accessto)myfiles,IwentasfarastheFederalAdmin-istrativeCourtandofferedtohavethemplacedinthefederalarchivesandthusmadeaccessibletothepublic.TheVerfassungs-schutzrefusedmyrequestatthetime,andthecourtsunfortunatelyfollowedsuit.Itisnotdestroyingthefilesthatisimportant,butratherhavingthempublished,becausefilessuchastheseconstitutepartofourcollec-tivememory.Withthisinmind,IwouldalsoliketothanktheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungfortheireffortsincreatingandmaintaininganextensivearchiveonleft-wingpoliticsinGermany.

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Atsomepointinthescorchingsummerof2019,amanuscriptarrivedthatcouldbeusedasabasisforreflectinguponleft-wingmemory.ThetextrevolvedaroundthequestionofwhetherthemovementFridaysforFuture,whichatthatpointwasstillinitsinfancy,wasontherightpoliticaltrack:whetherithadmadeasufficientemotio-

nalappealtothebaby-boomergeneration;whetherithadlearnedthenecessaryles-sonsfromleft-winghistory.Then,anolderpersonpennedatextaccusingtheyoungergenerationofnotyethaving“fullyunders-tood”fundamentalproblems,issues,andperspectives.Itwouldbeeasyatthisjuncturetogetpo-litelyupsetaboutpretensionssuchasthese,whichstemfromaknow-it-allatti-tudetowardsnewsocialmovementsandyoungergenerationsofleft-wingactivists.Apaternalisticperspectivesuchastheonecitedabovewillnaturallycomeupagainstaccusationsofarrogance.Butdowereallywanttobesoquicktopointthefingeratoth-ers?Howoftenhaveyouhadthefirst-handexperienceofmentioninganamethatyouconsidertobeimportantfromyourownhis-toricalperspective,onlytofindthatitismetwithuncomprehendingstares?Howoftenhaveyouthought,witheyebrowsraised,thatthisisabrand-newideathatisonlynowbeingdiscussed—anideathathadthricebeenrejectedyearsordecadesearlier.Itisalsopossibletointerpretthephrase“notyetfullyunderstood”asabenevolentpieceofsympatheticadvice.Wedonothavetomakethemistakesofthepastalloveragain;noteverydebatehastoberehashedineveryeraorgeneration;thereisakindofhistoryofexperiencethatweshoulddrawfrominordertocreatethefuture.Whethertheis-sueathandisexpropriation,alternativeeco-nomicstrategies,questionsofauthoritarianpopulism,thecriticismofracism,genderrelations—alloftheseandmanymorehavebeendiscussedinthepast.Beingleft-wingsometimesmeansbeingaheadofone’stime:today,thereareissuesontheagendainwhichthesearchforanswerscouldbene-fitfromthisleft-wingmemory.

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“Trivializingenvironmentalissuesbyappeal-ingtoconsumers(todrivetheircarslessof-ten,topurchasephosphate-freedetergents,ortobuytheirgroceriesfromorganicfoodshops)isanattempttoconcealapoliticallymotivatedaversiontoindustrialinterventionandanunwillingnesstobreakthroughthelogicofcapital.”Thiswasstateddecadesagoinadraftofatexttitled“GrundlagenderRadikalenLinken”(FundamentalsoftheRadicalLeft).Itwastheautumnof1989,andthoseintheprogressivecampoftheFed-eralRepublicofGermanywerelookingfornewopportunitiestoforgealliancesanddevelopnewapproachesthatwouldenablethemtogoonthesocio-criticaloffensive,whileafewkilometrestotheeast,opposi-tiongroupswerespeakingout.Intheopen-ingappealofthegrass-rootsmovementNeuesForum(NewForum),warningswereissuedregardingtheecologicalcostsofaconsumersociety,andpleasweremadeto“curbuncontrolledgrowth”.Theywantedto“makeroomforrenewalinordertoliveinamoreeconomicalandenvironmentallyfriendlymanner”.Initsday,themovementDemokratieJetzt(DemocracyNow)con-tendedthatdemocraticsocialismwasnec-essary“becausewhenhumanityisunderthreatandinsearchofviable,long-termmodesofhumancoexistence,itwillrequirealternativestoWesternconsumersociety,whoseaffluencetherestoftheworldhashadtopayfor”.Bothoftheseexampleshavesomethingincommon,namelythatwhatwasdis-cussed,desired,criticized,anddemandedwould,fromacontemporaryperspective,bebrandeda“failure”.TheattemptsmadebytheradicalleftintheWesttoreorganizefailednotleastduetothesamenationaldy-namicsthatalsopulledtherugoutfromun-

derthefeetofthoseintheGDRwhowerecallingfora“thirdway”.Today,whenwelookbackontheeventsof1989and1990,itisgenerallyfromtheendofhistory,whichhistoricallydevaluespartofthePeacefulRevolution:theleft-wing,social,andeco-logicalawakeningsofthateradonotfitintoanimageofmemorymarkedbynationalunityandcapitalisttriumph.AndthesamecanbesaidoftheleftintheWest:theywereamongthosewhoresistedthefurious,thun-derousmarchtowardsreunification.But,becausethepredominantviewofhistorynowdeemsthis“reunification”tobethe“right”outcomeofthatcourseofevents,otherperspectivesandpositions,alternativeanswers,andradicallinesofquestioningare“writtenout”ofthegeneralpopulation’scollectivememory.Itisthereforepossibletomakegeneraliza-tionsaboutthethingsthatapplytothesetwoexamples:ifitistruethatpastendeav-ours—successfulorotherwise—canalsobeusefulinthesearchforanswers,thentheleftneedstothinkabouthowitengageswithitsownmemory,howitnurturesit,andalsohowitemploysit.Thisleadstotwosetsofproblems.Onerevolvesmorearoundquestionsoftheleft’sself-image—inotherwords,thecharacteristicofneedingtosearchforanswersaboutthefutureinthepast.Theotherisofasomewhatmoreformal,institutionalnature:howcanwesafeguardtheprocessofcollectingandthematerialstoragerequirements;howcanweensurethatthesecollectionsare“keptavailable”,evenbeyondthegenerallyfinitelifespanofindividualorganizations,cyclesofmovements,andevenbeyondourownindividualbiographies?Whenitcomestothissubject,itwouldbealittleoddtoomitfromatextthegreatmanypastendeavours

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thatrevolvearoundquestionsofleft-wingmemory.TheBerlin-basedPapiertiger(PaperTiger),anarchivethatseeksto“assistinthereappraisalofitsownhistoryinthisform”,haslongsaidthata“pervasivesenseofahis-toricity,thecoexistenceofdifferentcurrentsandapproaches,andageneralsenseofdetachmentwithinthestructuresofmove-mentshindersthecollectivereappraisalofpoliticalexperiencesandtheemergenceofintergenerationallearningprocesses”,by“functioningasakindof‘memoryfortheleft’,collectingmaterials,andmakingthemavailabletothoseinterestedinhis-toricalwork”.Thereareagreatnumberofthese“freearchives”;manyofthemoper-ateunderprecariousconditions,andtheirfutureisnotentirelysecured.Afewyearsago,theVerbanddeutscherArchivarinnenundArchivaree.V.(AssociationofGermanArchivists)drewattentiontothisfactandformulatedaseriesofproposalstitled“ZurZukunftderArchivevonProtest-,Freiheits-undEmanzipationsbewegungen”(OntheFutureofArchivesforProtest,Freedom,andEmancipationMovements),whichincludedplanstoestablishafoundationthatwouldbe“madeavailableasacentralinstitutionforreceivingthosearchivesthatareabouttobedestroyed”.Recentshiftsinmodesofcommunicationpresentarelativelynewproblemforpreservingleft-wingmemory.Theinternethasnotonlyshiftedpeople’sperceptionoftheworld,buthasalsoinabroadsenseshakenupthewaysinwhichcontentisproducedanddisseminated.WhocollectstweetsandFacebookcalls,orthedebatesconductedinsocialnetworks,orthephotosandflyersthatareonlyavailableelectronically?Alreadyprecariousbusinessmodels,suchasthoseofindependentpub-lishers,arealsocomingunderevengreater

pressureinthisinternetera.Thedifficultsit-uationinwhichnewspapers—includingpo-liticalandscientificperiodicals—findthem-selvesshouldalsobetakenintoaccounthere.Withoutpaperssuchasthese,theafore-mentionedcriticaltraditionswouldnothavebeenabletotakeshapeinthefirstplace.Nodebateswouldhavebeenconducted,andwewouldnothavetheconceptsandtheo-riesthatweredevelopedinthestruggleforanalyticalquality,politicalpoints,andsocialeffectiveness.Partofthismemoryofcriticalthinkingisindangerofdisappearing—namelythear-chives,backlists,experiences,andcontexts.Whatwearedealingwithhereisthemate-rialexistenceofprojectsthatcontributetothepreconditionsofsocialcriticism.Thisap-pliesnotleasttotheperiodsince1989:threedecadesinwhichmuchhasoccurredontheleftbothonalocalandgloballevel,andinwhichcriticalself-reflection,radicalnewbe-ginnings,andattemptsatpoliticalpracticehavetakenplaceunderhithertounknowntechnologicalandsocialconditions.Thosewhowishtotalkaboutleft-wingmemorymustexpandtheconversationbe-yondthequestionofhowthepreservationof“ourhistory”canbesafeguardedataninstitutionallevel.Ifwearehonest,thisisusuallydonewithotherpeople’smoney.Wealsoneedtotalkaboutthecultureofmak-ingcollectionsavailable,ofentrustingthem,andalsooftheopennessittakestohandapartofone’sownbiographytoanotherper-son,knowingfullwellthatitwillnotremainunderlockandkey,butratherwillonlyhaveaneducationalimpactwhenitispublicis-sueonceagain,whenpoliticalallegiancesandlearningprocessesarepossible.Thisisnoteasy,especiallyinapoliticalscenethat

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seemstohaveatendencytowardsinternaldivisionandconflicthardwiredintoitsDNA.Somethingcanbedone,however,tocom-batthesegapsinleft-wingmemory,whichstemfromgapsintransmission.First,acultureofmutualrespectandap-preciationmightbehelpful—onethatisalsomaintainedwhenpoliticalcontrover-sieshaveincreased.Secondly,itwouldbehelpfultocultivateaself-imagethatdoesnotmeasurelearningresourcesaccordingtosomesortof“authority”ofearlierthink-

ers,butratheraccordingtowhetherthere-sourcesarehelpfulwhenitcomestosolvingcontemporaryissues.Theideamightalsobedisseminatedthatallactionstowardschangingconditionsalwayshaveanhis-toricalsidewhoseusefulnessforcognitiveprocessesandcreatingstrategiesshouldbediscussed.Wearenotinneedofnewclassicsorsaints,butwedoneedthede-siretoseekandfindsomethinginthepastthatsharpensthecritiqueandfacilitatesthepracticeonapoliticallevel.

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Ifeverythingwerepreserved,therewouldbenohistory,becausehistoryisconnec-tedwithloss,andtheephemeral.Noteverylossiscauseforregret.Thereismuchthatwewouldliketoridourselvesof,unburdenourselvesof.Itisonlyinretrospectthatwesometimesrealizethatitwasamistakenottohavepreservedsomething;becauseitwouldhavebeenamemory,becauseitwouldhaveproveduseful,becauseinre-trospectwecanseethattherewouldhavebeenalternatives.Wedonotcontemplate

thetransienceofactioninoureverydaydea-lings;instead,weliveandcarryoutthere-quirementsorfreedomsoftheday-to-day.Everydayliferepresentsthefamiliarand,initsnowness,seemscertaintous.Itmani-festsoftenenoughastherepetitionofthesameactions,thatis,habits;thisisnormalityunfolding.Itisabsolutelypositivetolivelife,provideditispossibletodothingsinone’sfamiliarenvironmentwithsomedegreeofregularity,tospendtimewithpeopleonelikes,ortoresolveconflictsthatonemightmiss.Inalloftheserepetitions,small,some-timesbarelyperceptibleshiftstakeplace,whichdeveloptheirownrhythm.Theyleadtoadifferenteconomy,onethatsometimescreepsuponusslowly,butatthesametimehasthepowertosuddenlyshiftourperspective.Then,lookingback,weknowthatsomethinghasshiftedandchanged.Wecometounderstandthatthatsenseofnormalitycannotberetrieved;thememoryisunreliable,thesteadyrhythmengulfseventsandexperiences.Weonlyremem-berselectivelyandunreliably;muchislost,butsomethingsliveoninourmemorywiththeclarityandprecisionofaphotograph:anaction,adecision,anargument,agesture,afacialfeature.Whenhabitsandroutinesareshifted,everydaylifeisshifted—spaceismadeforothertopicsofconversation,ot-herpeople,otherbehaviours.Westillthinkwewouldknowwhatweweredoingandwouldrememberanyway.Butthenwehavetorealizethatthedegreesofrelevancehavechangedand,whenitcomestopeople,thecommonpointsofreference,experiences,andknowledge.Wehavetoreflectonandstrivetorememberhowitwas:whichissueswedealtwith,whichpeoplewearguedwithandwhere,andwhatthecauseofthecon-flictwas.

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Someoftheseprocessescanbedistin-guishedaccordingtotheirexternalrhythms:thechairsofapoliticalgroup,party,orfoun-dation,theelectioncampaignsandparlia-mentaryterms,thepartyconferences,andthecommissions.Discussionsandevents,arrangementsandplanstakeplacearoundeventssuchasthese,whichhavetheirownkindofregularity.Wemaynotwantallthingstobepreserved;inwhichcaseitwillthenbecomepartofthatstorythatwecanatmostsuspectexisted.Theseexperiencesareincorporatedintotheinstitutionofthearchive:itisasiteofpreservationthatdefieshistoryandtransi-ence.But,atthesametime,itconstituteshistory,because,throughtheactofpreserv-ing,itallowsustorememberandunder-standthatthepresentisthepresentofthishistory—thatwehadchallenges,conflict,andalternatives.Itisthereforegoodthatweareabletoknowaboutitwithouthavingtorelyonthetestimoniesofthosewhoborewitnesstopastevents.Butanactofpres-ervationalwaysrepresentsanactofselec-tion.Thismeansthataspectsofthepresentdeterminehowinstitutionalizedmemoryisordered—thatis,thatwhichinfuturewillappeartoustoconstitutethepast,butwillthenseeminadequateandbeevaluatedasawrongdecisionfromtheperspectiveofthefuturepresent.Everyarchiveisboundtofail,becausearchivesrequirecriteriathatguidetheselectionprocess;criteriathathavebeenobtainedfromhistory,interrogated,andoverhauled.Thisiswhyitmakessensetoas-sembleagenerousselection.Thisputseacharchiveinrelationtootherarchives.Itisofgreatimportancetotheleftthatithaveitsownhistoricalmemory,fordomina-tionalsoinvolvestheabilityandtheendeav-ourtohavetimeatone’sdisposalandto

dispossessthedominatedoftheirmemory,tomockthem,ortoputtheminthewrong.Thiswouldimplythatallthepresentendeav-oursofthecontemporaryleft,alloftheprac-ticesandthealternativesaresuppressed.Thisincludesmemoriesofdefeats,nastyconflicts,abortedattempts,evenontheleftitself.Peopleareeasilymistakenwhenitcomestotheirownactionsandoftenover-estimatetheirownimportance,ortheim-portanceoftheirexperiencesanddecisions.Theyalsobelievethattheirideas,objectives,achievementsareoriginal;wherevertheserepresentarepetition,orarereversedinret-rospectasanactionoralineofthoughtwithfar-reachingimplication,itisessentialtotakealookinthearchives.Theprospectofhistoricalresearchisessential,theprospectofaretrospectiveviewthatallowsustofleshoutthedetailsofthenew,thatpicksupthethreadofpastideas,recallsthatwhichhasnotreacheditsconclusion,orwarnsagainstonceagaintryingoutstrategiesweknowtobefutile.Perhapshistorydoesnotteachusdirectly,butratheristhatexperiencethatisperceptiblejustbelowthesurface,whichoneencountersinarchivalmaterials;thattacitknowledgethatsuggeststhatwenotgodowncertainpathsagain,thatweexam-inepresent-dayactionsinlightofthepast,ortoseeitselfconfirmed.Thearchiverep-resentsanattempttokeepthisknowledgealiveandtomakeitavailableforcriticalanal-ysis.Thehistoryoftheleftandlinesofso-cialistdevelopmentmustbewrestedfromthesupremacyanddominanceofbourgeoishistory.AccordingtoWalterBenjamin,itisthevictorswhowritehistory,andtheyhaveyettostopwinning.Andthespeedwithwhichdecadesofeffortstoachievehistoricaltruthcanbedevaluedisexempli-fiedintheactivitiesconductedbytheAfD,

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orinthenewspaperattacksonsupposedpoliticalcorrectness—amagicformulathatdenounceshistoricalexperienceandknowledgeacquiredthroughpainstakingeffortstorememberandpreservethepast.Society’sexperiencesofviolence—alsothe

violencewithintheleftitself—arecauseforaprecisehistoricalanalysisthatwillenableustodothingsdifferentlynexttimeandper-hapsalsotoovercomethosetraumasthatarecausedbythethingspeopledotoeachother.

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I. “IN EVERY EPOCH, THE ATTEMPT MUST BE MADE TO DELIVER TRADITION ANEW FROM THE CONFORMISM WHICH IS ON THE POINT OF OVERWHELMING IT.” – WALTER BENJAMINInhisfragmentaryessay“ThesesonthePhilosophyofHistory”,WalterBenjamincomparesthepredominant“bourgeois”interpretationofhistory,historicism,witha

fundamentallydifferentapproachtohistory.Asmanyarewellaware,thehistoriographyinvolvedinhistoricismseekstoempathizewiththepeopleconcernedinpasteventsinordertounderstandhistory.Butwhoexactlydoesitempathizewith?“Theanswerisinevitable”,writesBenjamin,“withthevictor.Andallrulersaretheheirsofthosewhoconqueredbeforethem.Hence,empathywiththevictorinvariablybenefitstherulers…Whoeverhasemergedvictori-ousparticipatestothisdayinthetriumphalprocessioninwhichthepresentrulersstepoverthosewhoarelyingprostrate.”Thecriticalamongusmightnotjoininthistriumphanthowl.Afterall,aleft-wing—thatis,critical—interpretationofhistorydoesnotengageintheworkofcourtclerks,whichalwaysservedtheinterestsofprinces,kings,andautocrats,nordoesitformulateaself-satisfiedl’histoire pour l’histoire(historyforthesakeofhistory),butratherdirectsourattentiontothepastwiththeexplicitobjectiveofpermeatinganddisruptingthehistoricalcontinuumofthevictorsandex-ploringstrategicspacesforemancipatoryaction.Aleft-wing,democratic-socialisthistoriographythatstrivesforemancipa-tionandliberationwouldthusinterrogatetherulers’lengthychainofvictoriesandwouldrespondwithempathytothosewhoweredeprivedofthemeanstopassontheirownexperiences;whosehistorieswerenotaffordedthesamevalue.Left-winghistori-ographyresiststheallureoftheblatheringsycophantsoferaspast—notleastonbehalfthosewhotoday,inthepresent,areruledbytheheirsoftherulingclassesofthepast.BertoltBrecht’sfamous“QuestionsfromaWorkerWhoReads”vividlyexpressestheshiftinperspectivethatisconnectedwithsuchanapproach:“Whobuilttheseven

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gatesofThebes?/Thebooksarefilledwithnamesofkings./Wasitthekingswhohauledthecraggyblocksofstone?…AndeveninAtlantisofthelegend/Thenighttheseasrushedin,/Thedrowningmenstillbel-lowedfortheirslaves.”Left-winghistoriography,asweunderstandit,prizesanalternativenarrativefromthepast,ahistoryforgottenbeneaththedepths.“Thematerialistpresentationofhistory”,BenjaminwritesinThe Arcades Project,“leadsthepasttobringthepresentintoacriticalstate.”

II. “FREEDOM ONLY FOR THE SUPPORTERS OF THE GOVERNMENT, ONLY FOR THE MEMBERS OF ONE PARTY – HOWEVER NUMEROUS THEY MAY BE – IS NO FREEDOM AT ALL. FREEDOM IS ALWAYS AND EXCLUSIVELY FREEDOM FOR THE ONE WHO THINKS DIFFERENTLY.” – ROSA LUXEMBURGAsthereferencetoitsJewish-Polishepo-nymalreadydemonstrates,theRosa-Lux-emburg-Stiftungconsidersitselftoconsti-tutepartofthefundamentalsocialcurrentofdemocraticsocialism.FortheRosa-Luxem-burg-Stiftung,thetwoterms“democracy”and“socialism”areinextricablylinked.Theinterrelationshipbetween“democracy”and“socialism”isatthecoreofourhistori-calself-image,andthereisagoodreasonforthis.Mistakeshavebeenmadeandcrimeshavebeencommittedinthenameofso-cialismandcommunism;weunderstandtherootsofthesemistakesandcrimesandwishtopreventthemfrombeingrepeated.ThecallexpressedbyMarxintheintroduc-tiontotheCritique of Hegel’s Philosophy of

Right,“tooverthrowallconditionsinwhichmanisadegraded,enslaved,neglected,contemptiblebeing”,remainsforusthecategoricalimperative,evenwithaviewtothecatacombsofStalinismand“post-Sta-linism”,becausehistoricaljusticeisindivisi-ble.Weareconvincedthatthosewhofailtoconfrontthemistakesmadeandthecrimescommittedinthenameofsocialismnotonlylosetheircredibility,butalsolaytheground-workforitsresurrection.Inthissense,dem-ocraticsocialismisbaseduponafundamen-talanti-Stalinistconsensus.Incontrasttothe“newright”—peoplelikeHungarianPrimeMinisterViktorOrbán—whoarefightingforan“illiberaldemoc-racy”,weconsiderindividualfreedomsandconstitutionalguaranteestobeconstitutiveofdemocracy.Democraticco-determina-tionisimpossiblewithoutdefenceagainstdespotism.Inthissense,freedomandequalitybelongtogether,theyconstituteatandem,apointstressedbyMichaelBrie:“Freedomwithoutequalityisexploitation;equalitywithoutfreedomisoppression.Sol-idarityisthecommonrootoffreedomandequality.”Atthesametime,theRosa-Lux-emburg-Stiftungarguesforahighdegreeofhistoricaldifferentiation.Insteadofstokingtheembersofideologicallymotivatedpre-judices,weshouldmaketheefforttolookmoreclosely.ThisexplicitlyappliestothehistoriographyoftheGDRandtheindividualbiographiesofitscitizens.

III. “CONTRADICTION ENLIVENS THE CONVERSATION; THIS IS WHY IT’S SO QUIET ON THE FARMS.” – GERMAN PROVERBCriticalhistoriographyinevitablycontradictsthelegitimationofpower;fromitsperspec-tive,contradictionisthevehicleofintellec-

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tualdevelopment,andresistanceistheen-ginethatdrivessocialdevelopment.Therearehistoricalfacts.Therearebothtrueandfictitiousstatements.Butwhatdoesnotexistisa“correct”interpretationofthepast.Inthisrespect,too,theparty-commu-nistlogichasprovedfatal:accordingtothislogic,the“historicalsubject”,theworkingclass,fulfilsan“historicalmission”whichcanultimatelyonlybeimplementedbythe“leadingrole”oftheparty,whichisconse-quently“alwaysright”.Thelogicalconse-quenceisthereforethatStalinismdidnothesitatetofalsifyhistoricalfacts—incon-temporaryvocabulary,fakenews.Oneneedonlythinkoftheretouchingandeditingofphotographs.Butifthekeytoacritical,dialecticalinterpre-tationofhistoryisinherentlyrootedincontra-diction,thenthereisaneedfordemocraticpluralism.Inotherwords,differentlinesofinquiry,interpretations,andevaluationsofhistoricaleventsandcontextsformthefoun-dationofademocratichistoriography.Butpluralismhasanotherdimension.Forfartoolong,evenleft-winghistoriographythatextendedbeyondpartycommunismhasre-gardedhistoryasessentiallytheproductofwhitemaleprotagonists—andhastendedtodefinethe“historicalsubject”inaccord-ancewiththisperspective.Inthisway,however,themajorityofpeoplewholivedthroughpasteras—women,thecolonized,themarginalized—aresimplyconjuredoutofbeing.Fortunately,emancipationmove-ments—fromthewomen’smovement,tomovementsforracialjustice,totheLGBT-QIA+movement—havemadesignificanteffortstogoagainstthehistoricalgrain.Indoingso,itisnecessarytolookatthewholepicture:forexample,ifweweretoexaminethehistoryoftheAtlantictriangularslave

tradefromtheperspectiveofshipownersandmerchants,wewouldsketchanentirelydifferentimageofthepastthananhistorianwhoplacesenslavedpeopleatthecentreoftheirinvestigation.Knowledgeandinterestarealsocloselylinkedinthisregard.Anyonewhodirectstheirgazetowardsthosewhohavehistoricallybeenoppressedwillfindthatitisimpossibletoavoidtouchingupontopicssuchasexploitationbywayofcapital-istwagelabour,genderhierarchy,colonial-ism,andotherformsofsocialdomination.

IV. “THE MOST POWERFUL WEAPON IN THE HANDS OF THE OPPRESSOR IS THE MIND OF THE OPPRESSED.” – STEVE BIKOThepoliticsofhistory,inparticularfortheGermanleft,meansnotputtingtheNazipasttorest,butinstead,beingcommittedtocon-frontingandcounteringtheNazisandtheir“populist”apologists.“ThepremierdemanduponalleducationisthatAuschwitznothappenagain”,wroteTheodorW.Adornoinhisessay“EducationafterAuschwitz”.Inotherwords,wemustpreventthe“180-de-greeturnaroundinthepoliticsofmemory”demandedbytheAfD.History,however,doesnotonly—orevenpri-marily—influencethepresentthroughhis-torical-politicalconfrontations.Onthecon-trary,thatwhichhasasignificantinfluenceonpeople’sconsciousness,aswellastheimagetheydrawofthesocietyinwhichtheylivearethechangingyetpersistentmaterial,political,andculturalconditionsofdomina-tion—andthusalsothegenerationaltransferofexperiencesandtraditions.Inthisway,theirconsciousnessbecomesaweaponofthoseinpower,asSteveBikoputit.“Thetra-ditionofalldeadgenerationsweighslikea

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nightmareonthebrainsoftheliving”,wroteKarlMarxin“TheEighteenthBrumaireofLouisNapoleon”.ForAntonioGramsci,thisledtothecallmadein“PrisonBooklets”forpeopleto“criticizeallpreviousphilosophyinsofarasithasleftbehindfirmlyestablishedstratificationsinpopularphilosophy”.One thing iscertain: there isno“zerohour”—neitherinthepastnorinthefuture—

thatcreatedatabularasainthemindsofindividuals.Lifeandthoughtinevitablytakeplacewithinaspaceofcontradictions,andnoFrancisFukuyama,noHegelianWeltgeistwillleadustothe“endofhistory”.Onthecontrary:theknowledgeofthisinconsist-encyremainsanessentialprerequisiteforahistoryandapoliticsofmemorywhoseob-jectiveisemancipation.

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Thesocialismofthe20thcenturyhas—atleastinEurope—beenrelegatedtothepast;apast,however,thatdoesnotwanttofa-de.1Thissocialism,whichwasoncerouti-nelydepictedbythosewhochampioneditas“scientific”,“humanistic”,and“actu-allyexisting”,representsallbutonething:emancipationfromallconditions“inwhichmanisadegraded,enslaved,neglected,contemptiblebeing”.2(ThisishowaKarlMarx,followingLudwigFeuerbach,onceimaginedit.)Instead,thissocialismrhymed

withpaternalismanddegradation,withslanderandbetrayal,and,yes,evenwithtor-tureandmurder.Forthosewhostillbelievethattheyhavesoundreasonsforholdingontoanalternativetosocialrelationsthatareotherwisedominatedbycapital,thissocia-lismweighsontheirmindslikeanightmare.Thesocialismofthe20thcenturyoffersthemostconvincingargumentsagainstover-comingthedominanceofcapital;withre-gardtocivilization,socialismhasneverman-agedtoreachbeyonditsconditionatbirth,thatofviolence:“Revolutionalwaysmeansastateofsocialemergency,restriction,andextremeconditions;areturntoastateof‘normality’isgenerallyonlypossibleatahigherhistoricallevelatthepriceofaTher-midorianReaction.Inthebourgeoisrevolu-tion,thestateofextremeviolence(whichculminatedintheReignofTerror)wasatemporaryphenomenonthatprecededtheimpositionoftheinstitutionalizationof‘civilsociety’,whichcameattheinevitablecostoftheretreatofmaximalism.Forsocialism,ontheotherhand,thepermanenceofdirectviolenceremainedthedeterminingfactor;theexceptionalsocialsituationbecame‘normality’.Violencenotonlybecamethe‘midwife’(Marx)ofthenewsociety,itre-maineditscrucialpillar.”3Regardlessoftheperspectiveheldbythepoliticalleft(initsbroadestsense)intermsofthe70yearsof“realsocialist”practice,theleft—asawholeandinitsentirebreadth—remainschainedtothegulag,thewall,andthebarbedwire.Atleast,itwillremainthiswayaslongastheleftfailstounderstandthatanightmarecanonlybebroughttoanendbywayofsys-tematicandrepeatedconfrontationwithallofitsaspects;neverbytryingtorepress,orevenignoreit.Thiswillonlypreserveit—forgenerations.

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However,thisultimatelynon-socialismfromthepastalsooffersopportunitiesthatareoftenoverlooked:unliketheperiodleadingupto1917,socialismisnolongeravagueideatoday—thereare70yearsofpracticefromwhichonecanlearnhowtobringtheconceptofsocialismintodiscreditforalongtime,butalsolearnaboutallthethingsthatsocialismdefinitelyisnot.Itis,however,notsufficienttosimplyknowwhathappened—historianshavelongsinceansweredthesequestions,atleastforthemostpart.Thequestionsthatneedtobeaskedpertaintothewhyandhow,andnotjustthewho,what,andwhen.EversincetheopeningofthearchivesintheformerEasternBloc,anentirephalanxofhistorianshasbeensittingonthelegacyoftwentieth-centurysocialism.Itisdifficultforacademicstoreachabroaderpublic,re-gardlessoftheirdiscipline.Itisnotentirelysurprisingthat,inthepresentcase,thisisforthemostpartnotachievedbythosewhointerrogatethelinksbetweenideasandtheirnon-realization,andindoingsoinvestigateallaspectsofthiscomplex—butaboveallbythosewhoservethemainstreamopinionmakersbyreducingthegeneralperceptionofsocialismtooneofcrimeandterror.Thisdistortedincarnationofsocialismisofusetoallpoliticalpowers,barone:thepo-liticalleft.Ifthelefthasagenuineinterestinleadingcontemporarysociety—whichremainsbothpoliticallyandeconomicallyinthe20thcentury—intothe21stcentury,4nowisthetimeforittofinditswaybackmoreconsistentlythaneverbeforetoitsformervirtues,whichwerestrippedofallmeaninginthetorturechambersandatpartyconfer-enceproductions:tohonestyaboutone’sownactionsinboththepastandpresent;tothegenuinenatureofone’sownthoughts,

especiallywhenitbecomesuncomforta-ble;tosincerity,alsoandespeciallytowardsone’sopponent.Atbest,dictatorshipsarebuiltwithdeceitfulness;butnobodyisen-couragedeitherwithorthroughthem,letaloneempowered,toseekemancipationfromexploitationandoppression.Insteadofgleaningnewbenchmarksfromtheyearsofpowerandmegalomaniawithwhichtomeasureeverystepanddecisionagainstthemandgraduallyarriveatarealis-ticconceptionofsocialism,thepoliticallefttendstotreatitsancestorslikepoorrelativeswhoareasourceofembarrassment.Whattheleftdoesnotrealizeisthatitisconse-quentlyrejectingtheonlyrealchancethatexists—nottogainabsolutionfromwhom-ever,buttouncoverarouteintoapost-cap-italistsociety.Whenonemaintainsaforget-tingofhistory,oneremainsaprisonerofthispastand,insteadofitsanalyst,becomes,atbest,acaseforthesame.Everyday,thepo-liticalleftgoestothegreatestlengthsthatwouldallowittodevelopamodernsocialistpolitics,whichis,infact,thesourceofitsownorigins.Theleftoftodayhasaddedre-sistancetoexperiencetoitsexistingresist-ancetoadvice.Thosewhodenywhatstickstotheirshoeswillneverknowwherethoseshoescouldtakethem;thisiswheretherealsecretofthestrategicweaknessofthepoliticalleftlies.5

Itisthereforeallthemoreimportanttocollect,sort,catalogue,andpreservethatwhichhasbeenhandeddowntous,andtosetupandexpandskillscentres—allofthesearethingsthatarchivesdobest.Fortheperiodleadingupto1989,thisworkwascarriedoutbystateandotherarchivalfacilities,professionallyandoftenwithded-icatedemployeeswhoprovidedallthenec-essaryassistancefortheresearch.However,

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itisbynomeansjustaboutthedaybeforeyesterday,butalsonolessaboutyesterdayandtoday,aboutourcurrentstruggle—orlackthereof—foramodernsocialistpolicy,whateverthatmeans;aboutthepastinitsentirety,whichwedailyextendbyvirtueofmerelyexisting.Ifwestop,therewillbenothingleftofourpresentaspartofthepastfromwhichwewillbeabletolearninthefuture.Thatwouldbeafailurethatwereallydonotneed.

1  On this point, Ernst Nolte might be right; see Ernst Nolte, “Vergangen-heit, die nicht vergehen will: Eine Rede, die geschrieben, aber nicht gehalten werden konnte”, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 6 June 1986.  2   Karl Marx, “Zur Kritik der Hegelschen Rechtsphilosophie: Einleitung”, Werke [MEW], Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels , Berlin 1956ff., vol. 1, p. 385.  3  Manfred Kossok, “1917 – eine periphere Revolution?”, Utopie kreativ: Diskussion so-zialistischer Alternativen, supplement no. 1 (November 1991), republished in: Manfred Kossok, Sozialismus an der Peripherie: Späte Schriften, edited by Jörn Schütrumpf, Berlin, 2016, p. 45.  4  Contemporary society has arrived in the future at least in terms of technology—but even that is not entirely certain.  5  The Greens have been explicitly excluded here; although it is possible to predict the direction in which the party is likely to develop, this is ultimately still not entirely certain.

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Scholarlyeditorialwork,suchasthatoftheletterspennedbythesocialistandinterna-tionalistClaraZetkin,wouldbeunthinkablewithoutthecareanddiscretionexhibitedbythosewhoreceivedthelettersatthetimeregardingtheirwhereabouts.In1933,ClaraZetkin’sunpublishedworksmadetheirwayintothepartyarchivesoftheKPdSUinMo-scow,thesiteofherpoliticalexile.Sheent-rustedthehandoveroftheworksinquestiontoheryoungestsonKostja.Entrustedwiththeburden,hewasappalledbythewayin

whichhismother’slegacywashandled.Hewasnotaffordedthetimethathehadrequestedforsortingandorderingthedo-cuments.IwasdeeplytouchedwhenIwasallowedtoholdoriginalsofthelettersinmyhandssome80yearslater,inthereadingroomoftoday’sRussianStateArchivesofSocio-PoliticalHistory(RGASPI);100-year-oldpaper,thetextwrittenorprintedtightly,crampedonthepage.AmongthemwereletterstoAlexandraKollontai,completewithahandwrittennotefromtherecipientindica-tingthattheyweretobehandedovertothepartyarchivesforconservation.ClaraZet-kin’slettersthereforenotonlytellthestoryofthedaytheywerewritten;overthepast100years,scatteredthroughoutthearchi-vesoftheworld,thelettersthemselveshavebecomethebearersorconduitsofagreatmanystories.Locatingtheletterswouldhavebeenandwouldremainunthinkablewithoutthehardworkandcareofthecountlessarchivistswho—thenasnow—worktirelesslyinar-chives,associations,andorganizationsforthepreservationofthe“history”(orrather,histories)oftheinternationallabourmove-ment.Inmyworkasaneditor,IamfilledwithagreatdealofgratitudeandappreciationwhenIthinkoftheinterestandsupportofmycolleagues—especiallyGötzLangkauandGerdCallesen,MartinGrassandHenningGrelle,ChristineLauenerandAngelikaVoß-Louis,FranziskaDunkelandSabineKneib,and,lastbutcertainlynotleast,GritUlrich,fromthearchivesinAmsterdam,Vienna,Stockholm,Copenhagen,Zurich,Bern,Ham-burg,Stuttgart,Bonn,andBerlin—andthescansoflettersandarticlestheysenttome.Nowtoanotherstoryaboutletters:oneofthecourageouscourierswhodeliveredille-galletterswasBerthaThalheimer,ayounger

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comradeandfriendofClaraZetkin,wholaterco-foundedtheKPD.Threeofthelet-terstoBerthaThalheimercanbereadinthefirstvolumeofselectedletters,althoughtheyareinthepossessionofherfamily.IamincrediblygratefultoTheodorBergmann,thefamily’snowdeceasedfriend,forput-tinginagoodwordformeandthusmakingitpossibleformetopublishtheletters.IwouldalsoliketothankmyfriendsfromtheFörderkreisArchiveundBibliothekenzurGeschichtederArbeiterbewegung,inpar-ticularAnneliesLaschitza,EckhardMüller,OttokarLuban,andHeinzDeutschland,andIwouldalsoliketothankUllaPlener,MirjamSachse,FlorenceHervé,GiselaNotz,JohnPartington,andSetsuItofortheirexpertad-viceandassistanceinannotatingtheletters.TheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung’sArchivesforDemocraticSocialismhasnowacquiredaCDcontainingthecollectionofClaraZet-kin’sletters,whichisstoredintheRGASPI—whatalongjourneyfromMoscowtoBerlin!Iamalsoawareoftheongoingeffortsofcol-leaguesfromwhatwasthentheZentralerParteiarchiv(CentralPartyArchive)intheInstituteforMarxism-LeninismoftheSEDcentralcommitteestoobtaincopiesoftheunpublishedworksfromMoscow,includ-ingClaraZetkin’sletters.TheyarehousedinthecollectionoftheStiftungArchivederParteienundMassenorganisationenderDDR(FoundationArchivesofPartiesandMassOrganizations,SAPMO)inthefederalarchives.TheRGASPIletterswrittenbe-tweentheyears1921and1924constituteasignificantpartofthepublicationofthesecondvolumeofletters.IamgratefultotheemployeesattheADSforacquiringandpro-vidingcopiesoftheletters.Zetkin’slegacyoflettersisextensive:morethan1,000lettersalonehavebeenpassed

onfrom1914untilherdeathin1933.ThefirstvolumeoftheannotatededitionoftheZetkinletters1encompassestheyearsoftheFirstWorldWar.ClaraZetkin’ssocialistandinternationalistworktowardsachievingpeacebecomesapparentintheletters.Hercommitmenttopeace,inassociationwithhercomradesInèsArmandandAlexandraKollontaifromRussia,HeleenAnkersmitfromHolland,andAngelicaBalabanofffromItaly—tonamebutahandfulofthesocialistactivistsoftheday—waspan-Europeaninnature.ClaraZetkiniswell-knownforbeingoneofthefoundersofInternationalWomen’sDay.WhathashithertobeenlesswellknownaboutheristhatshewasalsothesecretaryoftheSozialistischeFraueninternationale(SocialistWomen’sInternationale),whichwasfoundedbywomenin1907whentheInternationalSocialistCongresswasheldinStuttgart.Intheyearsthatfollowed,thesocialistcongressesalsoincludedthemeet-ingsandconferencesofsocialistwomen.In1907,thefemalesocialistsdecidedtopub-lishthesocialdemocraticwomen’spaperDie Gleichheit(Equality),whichwaseditedbyClaraZetkinandprintedinStuttgartbythepublisherJohannHeinrichWilhelmDi-etz,asaninternationalwomen’sorganiza-tion.DuringtheFirstWorldWar,however,Die Gleichheitfounditselfimpactedbystrictmilitarycensorship.AnyunprintedmaterialhadtobeillegallytransportedacrosstheborderintotheNetherlandsandSwitzerlandandthenbepublishedthere.Onethingwelearnfromthelettersisthatsocialdemocraticwomen’smagazinesex-istedinanumberofcountriesatthetime.Theoriginsofthesocialistwomen’smove-mentanditspeacemovementduringtheFirstWorldWar—especiallyintheneutral

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countries—canbefoundinthearchivesofEuropeanpoliticalpartiesandsocialmove-ments.Theirstruggleforpeacewasdisre-garded,suppressed,andpersecutedinthesocialdemocraticpartiesofthewarringnations,whichhadalloptedtochampionapolicyof“truce”.2Inthisrespect,ClaraZet-kin’slettersconstitutepartofthe“memory”ofthesocialists’internationalandillegalstruggleforpeace,whichhasthusfaronlymanagedtoreachtheoutermarginsofhis-toriography—ifthat.FromthebeginningoftheFirstWorldWaronwards,allcontactwithforeigncountrieswasprohibited,andClaraZetkin’spostwascensored.3Withthisinmind,itisastoundinghowmanylettershavemanagedtobepre-served.“Iconsiderittocurrentlybeoneofthemostimportantofthetasksofwomen”,shewroteinalettertoAlexandraKollon-tai,“tokeeptheawarenessofinternationalsolidarityintheworkingclassaliveandtoreinforceit.”4Sheappealedtowomeninallcountries:“Ifmenmustkill,itiswewomenwhomustfightforlife.Ifmenremainsi-lent,itisourdutytospeakout.”5InZetkin’sopinion,itwastheSocialistWomen’sIn-ternational’s“proudprerogativeanddutyofhonourtonowawakenandleadwomenofallclassesandnationsinthestruggleforpeace”.ClaraZetkinwasworkingfromtheassump-tionthatwomen’sworkinthedomesticsphereandinsocietyhadbecomesomuchmoreimportantduringthewarthatthewillofwomenhadbecomea“politicalfactor”.6Shebrusquelydeclaredthat,withouttheinvolvementofwomen,“theentiresocial

mechanism”wouldhavecometoastand-stillalongtimeago.Shederivedwomen’srighttoshareandparticipateinallfuturesocialdecisions—aswellasdecisionsper-tainingtowarandpeace—fromtheactiveparticipationofwomenintheoperationofboththewartimeandnationaleconomy.Towardstheendofthewar,ClaraZetkinwrotetothewomen’srightsactivistandsocialistAnnaLindhagen,whowasinSwe-den:“Wearefundamentallydemandingtherighttoparticipateinpeaceworkfortherepresentationofallwomenbyallgov-ernments.”“Itisbecausewewomenarefemalepeople”,sheadded,“andnotfaulty,botchedcopiesofmen”,and“bringwithusourownspiritualandmoralvaluesthataidusincontemplatingandsolvingtheprob-lemsathand”.7

Arepassionandsciencenotequallyindis-pensablewhenitcomestoensuringthecohesionofasociety?Whenthingsthatbe-longtogetherdriftapartfromoneanother—manandwoman,homeandstreet,cityandcountry,theassets,histories,andculturesoftheworld—doClaraZetkin’slettersnotprovideperspectivesofhistory?Theyundoubtablydo.

1  Clara Zetkin, Die Briefe 1914 bis 1933 – Vol. 1: Die Kriegsbriefe (1914– 1918), edited by Marga Voigt, Berlin, 2016.  2  On 2 August 1914, union leaders in Germany decided to call off all strikes and avoid wage disputes for the duration of the war. The leadership of the SPD agreed to a standstill agreement within the party.  3  A state of siege was declared in the German Empire on 31 July 1914: the executive power of civil authorities was trans-ferred to military commands. The press was censored, and any opponents of war found their letters subjected to censorship.  4  See Clara Zetkin on Alexandra Kollontai, 2 September 1914, Zetkin: Die Kriegsbriefe, vol. 1, p. 22.  5  See the call to action as an open letter in: ibid., pp. 121ff.  6  See Clara Zetkin, “Zum Frauentag der schweizerischen Sozialistinnen”, ibid., p. 119.  7  See Clara Zetkin on Anna Lindhagen, 2 July 1917, ibid., pp. 341ff.

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Thelegacyofthe20thcenturyencompassessomemomentousevents:revolutions,localconflictsandworldwars,crimesagainsthu-manity,economicandsocialcrises,strug-glesfortheidealsofsocialjustice,demo-cracyandhumanrights,andscientificandculturalachievements.Mostoftheseeventsarecontradictoryinnatureandareevalua-teddifferentlybythedifferentprotagonistsinvolvedinsocialdevelopment,dependingonwhichpolitical,social,national,religious,ethnic,orothercommunitiestheyrepresent.

Wehaveallwitnessedhow thesocialscienceshavebeendiscreditedbywayofpoliticalmanipulationoverthecourseofthelastfewyears,andthestudyofhistoryhascertainlynotbeensparedfromthisphe-nomenon.Ithasbeendiscreditedbothbythefrequentlymadeclaimthatthereisnoverifiablepastandbythecompleteandutterdominationofspeculativeconstructsandarbitraryinterpretationsofthehistoricalpro-cessinthecollectiveconsciousness.Istronglybelievethatthereisanauthen-ticpastthatcanbeverifiedusingscientificmethods,justasthereisthestudyofhistoryassuch.Iamconvincedthatthestudyofhistorydoesnotfunctionasagravediggerfortherecentpast,butratherasatoolforanalyzingtheproblemsofthepresent.Iamconvincedthatthemagnificentinstitutionofarchivescanandmustplaytheroleofdoctorforthecollectivehistoricalmemory,becausetheycontaindocumentationofeverynationalhistory;theyrepresentthesehistoriesintheirentirety,repletewithalltheirdefeats,mistakes,andcrimes,butalsowiththetriumphsofthehumanspirit—alloftheeconomic,technological,scientific,andcul-turalachievements.Itisonlythedilettantewhomistakenlybe-lievesthescienceofhistorytobesimple,whenitisinfactthemostdifficultofallthesciences;thisisnotdissimilartoaprimaryschoolstudentwhohasonlyjustlearnedthebasicsofarithmeticthinkingthathighermathematicsseemssimple.Itisscience,andthepositivistmethodol-ogythatunderpinsknowledge,thatmustlimitthescopeofarbitraryinterpretationsofthehistoricalprocessandgraduallyteachtheproponentsofextremeapproachesthatthereareuncomfortablefactsandin-terpretations,andthatviewsthatdiverge

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fromtheirownalsoneedtobeacceptedbysociety.Thistherapeuticfunctionisnolessimportantthantheheuristicone.Byusingtheavailablemeanstotreat,oratleastdiag-nose,themaniacalfiguresonbothsidesoftheideologicalbarricadeswhoarerespon-sibleforinterpretinghistory,wewillenabletheresttofeelthattheyarepartofacom-moncivil,politicalnation—despitethevary-ingperspectivesregardingwhatoccurredinthepastandwhatishappeningtoday.Theseapproachestohistoricalmemoryandhistory’sprominentpositionasasciencewereofparticularimportancetoRussianhistoriansandarchivistsinthememorableyearthatmarkedthe100thanniversaryofthe1917revolution.Thisalsoappliestotheseriesoftragicanniversariesthatweretofol-low,whichcommemoratedtheoutbreakofcivilwarinRussia(1918–22),thefoundingoftheCommunistInternational(1919),andthe“GreatPurge”(1937–38).Unfortunately,theeventsthattookplace100yearsagohavebeenthrusttothemarginsofsocialperceptionandtheadoptionofhistoryasascience.Thestartingpoint,thenucleusoftheentireSovieteraofnationalhistory—andeventheentireSovieteraitself—wasreplacedinthecollectiveconsciousness,foranumberofdifferentreasons,bytheim-ageofStalin.AndthisoccurreddespitethefactthatRussiansocietyhadoptedtoadoptsocialistchangesduringtherevolutionof1917and1918.Afteradegreeofhesitation,societyalsoacceptedthetargetsthatwereinitiallyimposeduponitbywayofforce,aswellastheformsandmethodsofradicalso-cialtransformation.ThisdecisiondeterminedthephysiognomyofSovietsocialism,theexcessesofStalinism,andeventheoveralloutcomeoftheSovietdevelopmentperiodinmanyways.Thepriceofthissocialdecision

thatwasmadeacenturyago,andthepriceoftherealachievementsoftheSovietpe-riodhasprovedtobeextremelyhigh.Inthissense,italsoseemshighlysymbolicthatthe100thyearofremembranceoftherevolutionhappenstocoincidewithanothermemora-bledate,namelythe80-yearanniversaryoftheso-calledGreatPurgeorGreatTerror,inwhichhundredsofthousandsofSovietcit-izenswereeithershotdeadorsubjectedtootherformsofunwarrantedpoliticalperse-cutioninaccordancewithextrajudicialset-tlements.Societyhasalsoverynearlyforgottenthetragicanniversaryofthisevent,whichhascarvedadeepwoundintoRussia’snationalidentity.HadthenationalmonumenttheWallofGriefnotbeenerectedinthecen-treofMoscow,andhadtheRussianpres-identnotattendeditsopeningceremony,Russiancivilsocietywouldhavepassedentirelyunnoticed.ThefigureofStalinnotonlyrepressedtheideasandmethodsoutofwhichthephenomenonofStalinismarose,butalsocastadarkshadowoverthelateSovietperiod,inwhichastatewasfinallybuiltthat,thoughnotwithoutitsfaults,wasnonethelessawelfarestate;astatewhosecostwasanunfathomablenumberofcasu-alties.Between1991and1993,Russiansocietyjettisonedthestate’sachievements,justasithaddonewiththeachievementsoftheprevioushistoricalperiodin1917.Inkeepingwithitsinclinationto“startanewlifeatsunrise”,whichhadalreadybeennotedbythewell-known19thcenturyhis-torianVasilyKlyuchevsky,Russiansocietymanagedtwiceinthe20thcenturytout-terlydecimatethatwhichhadbeencreatedbythehardworkofpreviousgenerations.Iwouldhopethatweareabletolearnfromthisexperience.

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Endeavourstoanalyzeandcomprehendthepastaremadeallthemorecomplicatedbythenumerousattemptstoexploithistoryforpoliticalgain—attemptsthataremadebyarangeofpoliticalpowersinalmosteverynationstatearoundtheworld.Inlightofthis,itoccurstomethatwearealsofacedwiththetaskofencouraging—or,ifyoulike,forcing—thecollectiveconscious-nesstomakeuseofscientificallyverifiableknowledge.Russianarchivistsalreadytook

thefirststepinthisdirectionsometimeago:afewyearsago,theFederalArchivalAgencyofRussiaestablishedtheweb-sitetitled“DocumentsoftheSovietEra”,whichprovidesthegeneralpublicwithac-cesstothecentralarchivesonSoviethis-tory.Inthisscope,weintendtodigitizealloftheimportantcomplexesofdocumentspertainingtotheperiodofSoviethistoryandtherebyenablethepublictohavefreeaccesstothem.

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Politicalarchivesastheyexisttodayhavebeenevolvingsincethe1960s.Thenewestarchive,theGreenMemoryArchive,wases-tablishedin1997.Priortothat,from1967onwards,aseriesofpartiesintheFederalRepublicofGermanyhadoptedtonolongerretaintheirdocumentsthemselvesandusethemfortheirownprocessofestablishingtraditions,butinsteadtohandthemovertoanarchive.1Sincethen,thearchivesofpoli-

ticalfoundationshavetakenontheparties’centraldocuments,aswellasdocumentsfromtheorganizationsandindividualsintheirorbit,safelypreservingthem,profes-sionallyindexingthem,andmakingthemaccessibletoresearchersandtothegene-ralpublic.Thesedutiesapplytoallpoliticalarchives,eveniftheymanifestindifferentwaysandhaveeachdevelopedtheirownspecialcollectionareas.2

Inadditiontothesecoretasks—thepassivememoryfunction—archivesshouldalsoactivelycontributetomemorythroughtar-getedandspecificresearchproposalsandtheirownrevisioninconferences,events,publications,exhibitions,anddigitalfor-mats,andalsomergethehistoryofourbailorswiththemoregeneralhistoryofGer-manyandinternationalhistory.ThisiswhatdistinguishesthearchivesofGermanpoliti-calpartiesfrommostotherarchives.Article21(1)oftheGrundgesetz(BasicLawfortheFederalRepublicofGermany)statesthat“politicalpartiesshallparticipateintheformationofthepoliticalwillofthepeople”.Theparties’historicaldocumentsmakethisformationofthepeople’spoliticalwillvisibleandcomprehensibleandconstitutethefoundationforhistoricalexaminationsofthepoliticalprocessinGermany.Inthisway,thetaskoutlinedintheGrundgesetzistransferredtothehistoricalsphere.Thisfactrenderspoliticalarchivescentraltothehis-toriographyofGermany,asotherarchivesinthecountry’svastarchivallandscapearenotabletoperformthisfunctionatall,oronlyinpart.Thisisbecauseitisfirstandforemostthesedocumentsthatprovideuswithin-sightintohowdiscussionswereconductedandhowpoliticaldecisionsweremade;whyaparty’selectoralcampaignwaseithersuc-cessfulorunsuccessful,whyanindividualor

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asubgroupwasabletoprevailinadispute.And—entirelyincidentally,butnonethe-lesssignificanttoourknowledge—soundmethodsandagoodapproachcanalsobeemployedinordertouncovermoreabouttheinnerworkingsofourdemocracy,aboutpoliticaldynamics(anddynamicsbetweenthespheresofpoliticsandthemedia),uni-fyingritualsanddestructivedisputes,aboutprocessesofrenewalandrestoration,orsignsofwearandtear,aboutwaninglevelsofattractivenessorthereverse,andaboutthemotivationforpoliticalengagement.Thematerialcanalsobeusedtoexaminequestionsofsocio-historicaldimensions,ofthesocialandpersonalbasisforpoliticalactivity,andoflinkstoothersocialgroupsandmovements.Insummary,itisinmanyrespectsthankstothedocumentsthatarepreservedinpoliticalarchivesthatahistori-ographyofourcontemporarydemocracyisevenpossible.3

Archivescontainsourcesforawiderangeofperspectives:inbothwrittenandaudio-visualformat,frominternalpapers,tothecitizens’unitsoftheparties,totheperhapsmoreorlessexecutivedecisionofalead-ingfigure.Thesourcesstemfromalllev-els:fromthelocalandregionalleveltothecentralnationallevelortheEuropeanParlia-ment;theystemfromthirdparties,similarworkenvironments,frompeoplefrompar-tiesortheirsphere,fromorganizationsinthesurroundingarea,orcivicactiongroupsandotherNGOsofallcivicshades,butalsofrompoliticalgroupsatalllevels.Thesourcesconsistofwrittenmaterialofallkinds,audio-visualorthree-dimensionalcollecteditems,especiallyintheformofdifferentartefactsfromelectioncampaigns.Politicalarchivesactivelyacquirealldoc-uments,andthereisnolegaldeposit.The

bondoftrustthatexistswiththeorganiza-tions—andespeciallythepoliticalactors—whoaredonatingdocumentstoanarchiveiscrucialforpreservinganarchive’sexist-enceandensuringitcanbemadeaccessi-ble.Wediffergreatlyfromstatearchivesinthisrespect;statearchivesoperateonthebasisofalegaldepositoftherespectivein-stitutionsatthedifferentfederallevels.Sincethearchivesofpoliticalfoundationswereestablished,theworkofthesefoun-dationshasundergoneagreaterchangethanwaspreviouslyapparent.Foralongtime,thequantitativeexpansionofwrittenmaterialasmasswrittenmaterialthatonlyexhibitedaverylimitedserialityconstitutedachallengethatleftalastingimpressiononthemanagementsystemsofallthefounda-tions,especiallywithrespecttomagazinecapacities;now,digitizationisattheheartoftheendeavours.Tenyearsago,wethoughtthatthechallengelayindocumentmanage-mentsystemsandwebarchiving,butthedigitalworldhaslongsinceevolvedbeyondthat.Documentsthathavebeencreateddigitallyrequiretheutmostattention:ifwedonotatleastcollectthecentraldocumentsandar-chivethemaccordingtoasetofstandardsforthelongterm,thecentralrecordsfromthecurrenteraorfromthepast20yearswillbelost.Thisrequirescourage,becausesometimeswehavetomakedecisionsaboutthingswhenwecannotbesurehowthosedecisionswillwork,orforhowlong,andsometimesitemscannotbeacceptedintoanarchivefromtheoutsetbecausetheydonotadheretocertainformatre-quirements.Furthermore,itrequireswork;itrepresentsanewfield,especiallyintermsofadoptingandevaluatingmaterials.Thephenomenonofarchiviststakingresponsi-

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bilityforsupervisingthetechnologicalenvi-ronmentwherethedocumentsarecreatedisnotyetaspresentandhasyettobeim-plementedeverywheretotheextentthatitperhapsshouldbe.Andfinancialresourcesareofcourserequiredforthis,becauseestablishingalong-termdigitalarchiveinaccordancewiththeOpenArchivalInfor-mationSystementailsaseriesofspecificrequirements,andthefilescannotsimplybetakenanddownloadedontoaharddrive.Atthesametime,digitalarchivingbynomeansconstitutesthesoleareaofresponsibilityforarchivesinthe21stcentury,althoughitdoesremainafundamentalchallengethathasyettoberesolved.Onthecontrary,tothede-greethattechnologicalsystemsaredevel-oped,oldonesarereplaced,andnewonesareintroduced,archivesareputunderdirectpressuretoappropriatelyrespondtothesedevelopments.Ontheonehand,archivesareinstitutionsthataredrivenbytechnology.But,contrarytothepopularimageofdusty,metres-longfilingsystemsthatareguardedbyagroupofsociallyisolatedarchivists,ratherthanbeingmadeaccessibletothepublic,ar-chivesmakeuseofmoderntechnologies.Researchopportunitiesareavailableonline,enquiriesaregenerallyreceivedviaemail,andarchivistsusesocialmediaplatformstoprovidepeoplewithinformationabouttheirwork.Usershaveaclearideaoftheservicesofferedbyarchives,andthesearebynomeanstechnophobic.Eveniftheywantedto,archiveswouldnotbeabletoescapethiswithoutcompromisingtheirrelevance.Theeffectsofdigitizationcannotonlybeob-servedinthearchives’contactwiththebail-orsandusers,butalsointheirownworkingmethods.Amajortrendisemergingacrossallfields,namelythatworkrequiresagrow-

ing,knowledge-basedspecialization;intheinformationage,thedaysofthegeneralistshavecometoanend.Whenitcomestoarchives,thisallamountstonothinglessthanaparadigmshift:infu-ture,theywillpreserveinformation,andnolongertheofflinemediaformatstowhichtheyareinseparablylinked.Theinternetisthenewrepertoryspace,andhighlyquali-fiedinformationspecialistsarereplacinguniversalhistorianswiththeiraffinityforarchives.Inshort:thedigitaltransformationarrivedintheworldofarchivingalongtimeago.Theimpactsofthistransformationcanbeobservedtovaryingdegreesindifferentfacetsofsociety.Thelandscapeoftheme-diahascompletelychangedinthelasttenyears:nosoonerhadwearchivists—withthesupportoftheDeutscheForschungs-gemeinschaft(GermanResearchFounda-tion,DFG)—solvedtheproblemofwebar-chivingandintegrateditintoourstandardpracticesandoperations,thansocialmediaappeared.Socialmediaplatformsheraldanewseriesofrequirementsandchallengesforarchiving,bothonatechnicallyandale-gallevel.Alongwiththeinformalizationofpubliccommunication,wearenowobserv-ingafundamentalshiftinpoliticalcommu-nicationandpathsforpoliticalmobilization.AfewyearsagowejokedthatitremainedtobeseenwhoapartfromtheNSAwouldenduparchivingourSMSsandcontentfromotherdigitalmessagingchannels,buttodaywearelearningthatitisaboutfarmorethanjustthecommunicationitself.Here,too,anewproblemarisesforthearchivesofpo-liticalfoundationsthatarededicatedtohis-toricalandpoliticaleducation:fact-checkingitemsfromthearchivesagainsthistoricalfakenewsisbutoneexampleoftherange

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oftasksinthefieldofworkingwitharchivesandarchivalmaterials.Inadditiontothear-chives’memoryfunction,somethingelseisalsocomingtotheforethatwaspreviouslyreferredtoasthesources’“rightofveto”,especiallywithinthestudyofhistory.Ar-chivestendtobeaffordedthefunctionofactingascustodiansofanhistoricaltruththatadherestoasetofhistorical-scien-tificprinciples.Anditispreciselythemoreephemeralsocialmediasourcesthatques-tionandchallengetherulesofauthenticityandaccuracythoughtheiruse.Criticismofdigitalsourcesthereforewar-rantsparticularattention.Itistherespon-sibilityofarchivestoexplainthetechnicalformationconditionsandthenecessarypro-cessesofchangeinordertoensuretheau-thenticityandintegrityofthedigitalobjects.Archivesfunctionasexpertsinthepreserva-tionofinformation;expertswhoendeavourtogainthetrustoftheirbailorsandusersthroughthetransparencyandtraceabilityoftheiractions.Awarenessofdatasecurityhasonlyjustbeguntoawakenagainstthebackdropofhackerattacksandtampering,andwillwithoutadoubtcontinuetogrowevenmoreimportantintheyearstocome.Atthesametime,itisbecomingclearthatpoliticalcommunicationandmobilizationismovingtoasectionofthewebthatweknowverylittleabout.Wecanonlysee20percentofthesecommunicationsthroughfreelyac-cessiblewebsites;therestisconductedin

privateforums,chats,orotherclosed-sys-temapplications.Thishasanimpactonthepoliticalcultureofasocietythatisalreadyundergoingafar-reachingtransformationfrombeinganindustrializedsocietytoaser-vice-orientedsociety.Thisneedstobeachallengeandataskofanypoliticalarchive.Howcanwerespondappropriatelytothesechangeswithoutblindlyimplementingoneinterfaceafteranotherinproprietarytechnicalsystemsinordertoarchiveasinglechathistoryorcall?Whatdoesthecollectionprofileofpoliticalarchiveslookliketoday?Whichrecordsaredeemedtobeofarchivalvalue?Howcanweorganizetheacquisitionofsuchfluid,ever-shifting,ephemeralmaterials?Andfi-nally,thesequestionsmustbeconsideredagainstthebackdropoftheresourcesthatwehaveatourdisposal,becausetheana-loguewillstaywithuswellintothefuture.Theperiodofhybrid—thatis,analogueaswellasdigital—formationofanetworkofar-chiveswillbewithusforawhiletocome—andwillrequirenewsolutions,especiallyduetoitsspecificcharacteristics.

1  On the history of political archives, see Die Archive der Politischen Stif-tungen in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland: Ein Archivführer, edited by Anja Kruke and Harry Scholz, Bonn, 2010.  2  See the documentation and collec-tion profile of the archives of political foundations in Germany, 2nd edition, Munich.  3  In addition to performing this function, archives such as the Archive of Social Democracy (AsdD) also preserve other kinds of documents, such as those pertaining to people’s experiences under dictatorships and resistance efforts against such regimes.

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Themonopolythatarchivesandlibrarieshadoninformationforseveralmillenniaappearstohavebeenovercome.Ifaper-sonisseekingimmediateinformation,theycansimply“google”aterm;iftheyrequiremorespecificinformation,theycanatleastconsultWikipedia.Whoneedslibraries—letalonearchives—whenwehavetheseopti-onsatourfingertips?Asaresultofruminationssuchasthese,librariansarebanningtheirprintedbooksfrombeingputintolibrarystacks,arecan-

cellingtheirsubscriptionstoprintednews-papersandmagazines,andarehappythatthe“digitalrevolution”ismakingiteasierforpeopletoaccessknowledgefromanyloca-tionandinaspace-savingmanner;inshort,thataccesstoknowledgeisbecomingmoredemocratic.Butisthistrulythecase?Thisidea,whichisalsosharedbymanylibraryusers,thateverythingisalreadyavailablein“digital”form,turnsout,uponcloserinspection,tobemoreofanidealthanareality.Butwhetherornotthisnewdigitalformatforsharingknowledgeisinfactdesir-ableisaquestionthatshouldbediscussedatleastoncebythoseresponsibleformedi-atingknowledgewithinanarchiveorlibrarycontext,beforedecidingtoswitchtoasys-temthatprioritizesdigitaloptions.Suchadiscussionwouldalsoinvolvequestioningtheextenttowhichlibrariesarestillabletomakeinformationavailabletothepublicforfree.WhatIamprimarilyreferringtohereisnottheunsolvedissueofdigitalformats.Li-brariansweresodelightedwhentheadventofCD-ROMsheraldedanincreaseinspaceandconvenience,untiltheirlibrariesweresuddenlysuppliedwithcomputersthatdidnothaveCD-ROMdrives(theyarenolongerneededbecauseeverythingisstoredon“clouds”thesedays).Scientiststodayal-readyassumethatthedecadessurroundingtheturnofthenextmillenniumwillbeabletoofferfuturegenerationsthecollectionsthatareleastdevelopedforthefuture.Evenwhenitcomestotheinventoriesofli-braries—thatis,the“corecompetence”oftransmittingknowledge—discussionsarehardlyeverconductedregardinghowtheircollectionsmightbemaintained.InGer-many,therearestillapproximately75,000newbookspublishedinprintedformateveryyear.Inthefieldsofhumanities,social

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sciences,andculturalstudies,almostallac-ademicallyrelevantpublicationsstillappearonpaper.Butthesituationisdifferentwhenitcomestorecentpublicationsinthefieldsofmedicine,engineering,andthenaturalsciences.However, thequestionof“ownership”ariseshere:inthepast,librarianswouldselecttitlesfromtherangeofferedbypub-lishinghousesforacertainsectionoftheircollectionoraparticulartargetgroup,whichthenbelongedtothelibraryfollowingthepurchaseandcouldthereforebemadeavail-abletothepublic.Thesedays,itistheprerogativeofpublish-inghousestodecidewhetherornottheywishtosellelectronicbookstolibrariesatall.Andshouldthey“generously”choosetodoso,thentheyaretheonetosettheterms:specificlicensingmodelsnotonlyinhibitthepreservationofknowledge,butalsodeter-minecostsandlendingpolicies.WhilethereformofGermancopyrightlawthatcameintoeffecton1March2018didheraldase-riesofimprovementsforlibrariesandtheiruserswithregardtoduplicatingworksfromtheircollectionsandmakingtheseworksavailabletothepublic,therehavealsobeensomesignificantbackwardstepsintermsofwhichconnectionusesarepermitted(forexample,printingoutorsavingtoaharddrive).Furthermore,magazinesthatarenotexplicitlyprofessionaljournals,aswellasnewspaperswillinfuturegenerallynotbepermittedtobeelectronicallyreproduced.Thefunctionandtaskofarchivesandlibrar-iesisthereforenothinglessthantodefendfreeaccesstoknowledgeagainstthemar-ketpowerofpublishinghousesandthedig-

italexpropriationofthecommonperson.Thisisespeciallytrueofthecooperationbe-tweenlibrariesandinternetgroupssuchasGoogle,whichhasbeenmonopolizing(andultimatelyprivatizing)knowledgeatthepub-lic’sexpense.TheGermanDigitalLibrary,whichprovidesdigitizedcopiesofbooks,images,andar-chivalmaterials,providesanexampleofhowthingsmightbedonebetter.Financedbythefederalandstategovernments,thisdigitallibrarymakesculturalheritageavail-ableonline—freeofcharge,foreveryone,and,aboveall,unfetteredbycommercialinterests.AnotherpositiveexampleistheDigitalesDeutschesFrauenarchiv(DigitalGermanWomen’sArchive,DDF),aspecial-istportalthatprovidesabroadpublicwithdigitizedversionsofselectedsourcesonthehistoryofGermanwomen’smovements.Thisexampledemonstrateswhatkindsofgreatprojectsaremadepossiblewhenar-chives,libraries,anddocumentationcentresareprovidedwithsufficientresourcesandwhentheirinterconnectednessisencour-agedandsupported.Librariesarestillthemostwidelyusedcul-turalinstitutionstoday.Thisisdueinparttothefactthat—inaworldinwhichtherein-creasinglyfewernon-commercialspaces—theyofferaspacewherepeoplecansimplybewithoutfeelingthepressuretoconsume.Theyareofgreatimportanceforculturalpar-ticipation,education,andsocialinteraction.Theknowledgeofthefuturemightendupbeingmadepublicandreadilyaccessible,butitalsomightnotbe:makingthispossiblewillconstituteasignificantchallengeforthearchivesandlibrariesofthe21stcentury.

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Itisatruismthatdataanddocumentstodayareprimarilycreatedanduseddigitally—onethatappliestotheprivate,political,andprofessionalspheresinwhichweoperate.Whilesomedigitalinformationdisappearsagainafterbeingcreated,thereisotherdigi-talinformationthatwewouldliketobeabletocontinuetousefarintothefuture—either

becauselegalprovisionsdemandit,orbe-causeprivateandpublicinstitutionswishtodocumenttheirdecision-makingprocessesandtheiractivitiesforthelongterm,orbe-causethedataareofparticularculturalandhistoricalvalue.Digitalinformationmanifestsinavarietyofdifferentways:forexample,asphotographs,textmessages,“posts”onsocialmediaplat-forms,websites,databases,videomessages,orastheprogramcodesofcomputergames.Thisdiversityrendersdigitalarchivingamulti-disciplinaryaffair.Butnoteverythingthatisdigitallygeneratedisworthpreservingforthelongterm—notbyanymeans.Archiv-ingremainsaselectiveprocesseveninthedigitalrealm,andthisprocessinvolveseval-uatingwhatisworthpreservingforthefu-tureandwhatcanbedeletedafterasuitableretentionperiodhasexpired.Informationthatisdigitallygeneratedmustalsobearchivedindigitalform,becauseitisexpensiveandoftenimpossibletotransferafileordatarecordtopaperormicrofilmforarchiving.Awebsite,athree-dimensionalarchitecturaldiagram,oracomputergamecannotbe“printedout”inameaningfulway.Itisimperativetoavoidanydisruptionsorchangestothemediaforthepurposesofarchiving;thoseusingthearchiveswouldalsoliketoconsultthearchivematerialdigi-tally.Theaimofadigitalarchiveistoensurethatdigitaldocumentsremainaccessibleandusableforaslongaspossible.Thisar-ticleoutlinesthefundamentalprinciplesforachievingthisobjective.

WHAT DOES A DIGITAL ARCHIVE SEEK TO ENSURE?Therearetwotermsinthisdescriptionofobjectivesthatrequireanexplanation.“Aslongaspossible”referstothepreservation

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ofdigitalinformationovergenerationsofcomputerarchitecture,operatingsystems,applicationprograms,andfileformats,whichamountstotimeperiodsspanningafewdecadestomanycenturies.Westillhavenoconcepttodayofhowcomputerarchitecturesandapplicationswillbestruc-turedinthefuture—orifthesemetaphorswillevencontinuetoexist.Thesecondtermis“maintainingusability”.Digitalarchivingisnotanendinitself;itcanonlybejustifiedifitenablesdigitalculturalassetstobemadeaccessibleandusedinavarietyofways.Theselectedtargetgroupsshouldbeabletoopenanddisplaythearchivedfiles,aswellasinterpretandusethemfornewpurposes.Ifthisstillisstillthecaseafteralongperiodoftime,thismeansthedigitalarchiveworks.

HOW IS THIS ACCOMPLISHED?Archivingdoesn’tmeansimplyrenderingdataontoawear-resistantstoragesystem(whichthemanufacturermaylabelas“au-dit-proof”),makingoneortwobackupcop-ies,andthenturningone’sbackonthedataandforgettingaboutit.Adigitalarchivehastobeservicedandmaintainedonaregularbasisandwillchangeovertime.Therearefourbasicmeasuresthatneedtobetakeninordertoensureadigitalarchive’scontinuedusability:First,thedataflowofthefilesthatneedtobearchivedhavetobetransportedunalteredintothefuture.Themajorityofinstitutionstodayadheretothefollowingpractice:threeormoreidenticalcopiesofthedatashouldexist,andthesecopiesshouldbestoredonatleasttwodifferentstoragetechnologiesthatarestoredattwodifferentlocations.Today,cloudtechnologiesareplayinganin-creasinglyimportantroleintermsofprovid-ingcost-effectivemethodsforstoringlarge

volumesofdata.Thankstoahighdegreeofspecialization,cloudswillgenerallytendtobemoresecurethantheserversthatcon-stitutepartofanorganization’sowntech-nologicalinfrastructure.However,whenselectingacloudprovider,itisimportanttonotewherethecompanyheadquartersislocated;dependingonthenation-statecontextandspecificcircumstancesofthecountryinquestion,stateactorsmightbeabletogainaccesstothedatastoredonacloud.Forexample,undertheCLOUDAct,US-basedtechnologyprovidersareobli-gatedtoprovidetheUnitedStatesgovern-mentwithaccesstotheircustomers’datauponrequest,evenifthedatacentresinquestionarelocatedinEurope.Archivaldatathatdocumentpoliticalactivity,reli-giousbeliefs,ormedicaldiagnoseshavenobusinessbeinghostedbyproviderssuchasthese.However,therearecloudprovidersthatareabsolutelytrustworthyandthatareabletotakeovertheprocessofassemblingandoperatingaclient’sstorageinfrastruc-ture.InSwitzerland,forexample,thispro-viderisSWITCHengines,whichisacloudfortheacademiccommunitythatisoper-atedbytheSWITCHfoundation.Thefoun-dationisnon-profit-makingandisownedbySwisscantons,andisintendedtoprovideresearch-relatedITservices.Notonlyisitnotpossibleforthegovernmenttoaccessthedatastoredonthiscloud,itwouldbeen-tirelyinconceivablewithintheSwissdemo-craticfederalistsystem.Asasecondmeasure,everyobjectinadigi-talarchivemustbeidentified,rightdowntothefiletype.Theidentificationprocessmustnotrelyonacurrenttechnicalsolution.Theuseofdigitalobjectidentifier(DOI),whichoneismorelikelytoencounterinthelibraryworld,andtheArchivalResourceKey(ARK),

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whichismorecommonintheworldofar-chives,iswidespreadaroundworld.Usingpersistentidentifiersallowsdigitalresourcestobecitedandlocated,evenafteralongpe-riodoftime.Thirdly,thecontextofthearchivalrecordsmustbedocumented,asisalsothecaseforpaperarchives.Itmustbepossibleforathirdpartytoclassifytheorigin,creation,andsignificanceofthedata.Thisistheonlywaythatthecontextofthedata’screationandtheirsignificancecancontinuetobede-terminedevenafteragreatdealoftimehaselapsed.Fourthly,itisimportanttouseopenfilefor-matsforarchiving,whichareincommonuseandnotpatentedorlicenced.Thisin-creasesthechancethatthefileswillstillbeabletobedisplayedandusedafteralongperiodoftime.Archivesoftenoptforthe“file-migration-on-stock”strategy:whenfilesareadmittedtothearchive,theyareconvertedintowhataregenerallyreferredtoasarchivalformats,whichincludePDF/A,TIFF,andWAVE.Thispreventsfilesfrombe-ingarchivedinproprietaryoffice,email,orimageformatsthatwillnolongerbeabletobeinterpretedafteronlyamatterofyears.Thisisagoodstrategy,buttheoriginalfor-matsmustalsobesavedinadditiontothemigratedfiles,becausefilemigrationalwaysentailsacertaindegreeofinformationloss.What’smore,thestrategyonlyworksforsimpledigitalobjectsthatarebasedonin-dividualfiles.Otherstrategiesarenecessarywhenitcomestoarchivingmorecomplexobjectslikewebsitesorsoftwaresystems,suchasemulation,whichinvolvesrepro-ducingentireruntimeenvironmentswithinthearchive.Adigitalarchivewillperiodicallyreviewthefileformatsinitscollections.Ifthereisany

indicationthattheformatsarebecomingobsolete,thenconservationmeasuresmustbeplanned,tested,andimplemented.Thefilesinquestionarethenconvertedintonewarchiveformatsinacontrolledandwell-documentedprocess.Suchmeasureswillgenerallyneedtoberepeatedeveryfewdecades,andthiswillinevitablyleadtofurtherinformationloss,asintheinitialfilemigration.Modernconceptsandpracticesassumethatchanges,aswellascontrolled,documentedlossesareindispensabletothepreservationofanarchive’scoreinforma-tion.Themeasuresdescribedherearederivedfromaninternationallyobservedstandardfordigitalarchiving(ISO14721,OAIS).Themetadataschemasusedinthearchivearealsointernationallystandardized(forexample,METSandPremis),whichen-sures,amongotherthings,thatthedigitalarchivingprovidercanbechanged.Aman-ufacturer’strustworthinesswillalsobein-creasedifitscomponentsarelicensedasopensourceandarethereforeabletobefurtherdevelopedindependentoftheman-ufacturer.

WHERE WILL THE JOURNEY LEAD US?Itisbecomingapparentinmoreandmorefacetsoflifethatdatabasesneedtobekeptinausablestateformanydecades,evenifthedatainquestiondonotdirectlyconsti-tuteorcorrespondtodigitalculturalassets.Documentspertainingtoaperson’sentitle-menttoapensionandtheirmedicalrecordsneedtobestoredforatleasttheperson’slifetime.Documentspertainingtotheman-agementofrealestate,themaintenanceofamotorway,orthedismantlingofanuclearpowerplantalsoneedtoremainusablefora

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longperiodoftime.Productivesystemsaregenerallynotabletodothis;thetechnologyofdigitalarchivesisimposing.Thismeansthatarchiveshavetoautomatetheirprocessesanddesigntheirinfrastruc-turestobeabletohandlelargevolumesofdata.Inthefuture,archiveswillceasetobeisolatedsystemsthatoperatealongsidealltheothersystemswithinanorganiza-tion—thisiswhatpreviousITarchitectureconceptsintended.Infuture,productivesystemssuchase-filesolutionswillhandfilesovertothearchiveonlyafewyearsaf-terabusinesstransactionhastakenplaceandwillthenaccessthedatainthearchiveforresearchpurposes.There,thefixeddoc-umentsthatarenolongermodifiablearesubjecttomaintenanceplanning;however,thankstoclearidentifiability,third-partysys-temscanstillmakeefficientuseofthembywayoftechnicalinterfaces.Despitetechnologicalupgradestoarchives

andarchivingprocesses,theoccupationofscientificarchivistisnotlikelytodisappear.Onthecontrary:archivesareinurgentneedof“digitalarchivists”and“archivalcom-puterscientists”;theyareinneedofpeo-plewhonotonlyhaveasoundknowledgeofarchives,butalsohaveanunderstand-ingofITarchitectures,processmodelling,andbothdataandmetadataformats.IntheGerman-speakingworld,therelevanttrain-ingcoursesareonlynowbeginningtoori-entthemselvestowardsthe“digitalturn”,whichwasalreadyunderwayintheworldofarchiving15yearsago.Ifwechoosetodigitalizeoureconomy,ouradministration,essentiallyourentiresoci-ety,thenourarchivesshouldalsodocumentthisdigitalworldinanappropriateformatandmakeiteasytounderstand,justastheydidinthepastintheanalogueworld.Thisisexactlywhatarchivistsareworkingtowardstoday.

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TheSwissSocialArchivesinZurichhaschangedconsiderablyinitsfirst113yearsofexistence.Thearchivewasoriginallyes-tablishedin1906astheCentreforSwitzer-land’sSocialLiterature.Initiallyhousedinasmallone-bedroomapartment,ithasdeve-lopedintoaresearchinfrastructureforthehumanitiesandsocialsciences,whichin-cludesaspecialarchivededicatedtocivilso-cietywithwrittenandaudiovisualmaterial,aspecializedacademiclibrary,topic-specific

documentation,andaresearchfund.Thearchivecollectsbothanalogueanddigitalmaterial,conductsextensivepublicrelationswork,andin2018registeredmoreloansthantheSwissNationalLibrary,whichisap-proximatelytentimeslarger.ThearchiveandlibraryoftheSocialArchivesnowconstitutepartoftheSwissInventoryofCulturalPro-pertyofNationalandRegionalSignificance.Theinstitution’sdevelopmenthasagreatdealtodowiththe(mutuallydependent)trustofvariousstakeholders:theadministra-tivebodiesthatsubsidizetheinstitutionanditsprojects,thosewhosupplydocumentstothearchives,andthosewhousethearchivalservices.Howdidtheymanagetoestablishandmaintainthissenseoftrust?Foundedin1906,theinstitutionwasrenamedtheSwissSocialArchivesin1942andhasbeensup-portedbyanon-partisanassociationsinceitwasfirstestablished,1whichdistinguishesitfrommanythematicallyrelatedinstitutionsinothercountriesthataretiedtospecificpoliticalparties,tradeunions,orpoliticalfoundations.Inhisroleasafounderofthear-chives,thepriestandsocial-democraticpo-liticianPaulPflügerwasinspiredbytheMu-séesocialinParis,asociologicalthinktankestablishedin1894thatencompassedamu-seum,library,andresearchcentre.Againstthebackdropofmountingsocialconflicts(inparticularin1906,theyearinwhichthear-chivewasestablished,EuropewasengulfedbyawaveofstrikesthatalsoledtoviolentindustrialdisputesinSwitzerland),asimilarinstitutionwassetupinSwitzerlandwiththegoalofmakingknowledgeintheareaofthe“socialissue”availableintheserviceofreformistaction,andthuscontributingtoasenseofsocialequilibrium.TheSocialAr-chive’sthematicfocusthenbroadenedoverthedecadestoincorporatesocial,political,

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andculturalchange,andsocialmovements,withaparticularemphasisoncontemporarySwisshistory.Fromthebeginning,awidearrayofsocialandpoliticalgroupswererepresentedintheboardoftrustees.AmongitsmembersatthetimetheassociationwasestablishedweretheSwissFederationofCommerceandIndustry(SHIV),theZurichChamberofCommerce,theSwissFederationofTradeUnions(SGB),theSchweizerischerGemein-nützigerFrauenverein(SwissNon-ProfitWomen’sAssociation,nowDachverbandSchweizerischerGemeinnützigerFrauen,SGF),andanumberofworkers’associa-tions,aswellaspoliticiansfromavarietyofpoliticalparties,theBishopofSt.Gallen,abankingexecutive,theSecretaryoftheSwissWorkers’AssociationHermanGreu-lich,FritzBrupbacher,aworkers’doctorwhohadanaffinityforanarchism,andBettyFarbstein-Ostersetzer,awomen’srightsactivist.InadditiontoPflüger,themanage-mentcommitteealsoincludedrepresenta-tivesofthecityofZurich,thecantonalandmunicipallibrary,theright-wingliberalNeue Zürcher Zeitung,theCatholicNeue Zürcher Nachrichten,andtheSocialDemocraticPartyofSwitzerland,aswellasthreeprofes-sorsfromtheUniversityofZurichandtheUniversityofBern.Fromthebeginning,thisbroadsupportbasemadeitpossibleforthefoundationtosecuresubsidiesfromboththecityandcantonofZurich.TheinstitutionbuiltonPlüger’sprivatelit-eraturecollectionanditsinitialacquisitionsprimarilyconsistedofbooksandshortwrit-ings,wherebytheyconsistentlytookintoaccountallpoliticalorientations.Thisishowanumberofdifferentcollectionswerees-tablishedandaccumulated;forexample,richcollectionsofprintedmaterialsper-

tainingtotheearlyhistoryoftheSwissandEuropeanlabourmovements,collectionsonthetheoriesofsocialism,communism,andanarchism,onthepoliticalandtradeunionistInternationals,oronthefascistandanti-fascistmovementsthatwereactiveintheinterwarperiod.2Adocumentationofmediaresourcesalsoemergedfrom1943onwards,whichtodaycomprisesatotalof1.2millionarticles.Thenewspaperandmagazinecollectionscontainanumberofraritiesandalsocovertheentirepoliticalspectrum.In1921,directorSigfriedBlochreceivedcriticismfromaboardmemberthattoomuchcommunistliteraturewasbe-ingacquired,aclaimthathecounteredwiththeargumentthatscientificinstituteshaveadutytocollectmaterialstemmingfromalldirections.Inthe1930sand1940s,theinstitutionwasamongonlyahandfulintheGerman-speakingworldthathadbothNazipropagandabooksandanti-fascistliteratureonitsshelves.The1932annualreport—whichwascomposedinthespringof1933atthesametimethattheNazibookburningsoccurred—recordedthefoundation’scol-lectionstrategy:“Thechoiceofacquisitionsisbasedneitheruponthepersonalopinionsofvisitors,noruponthoseofthemanage-ment.Rather,itisconcernedwiththepres-ervationofamostpreciousculturalasset:adocumentationofthepresentforthefuture.Itisessentialthatthistaskbeapproachedwithastrongsenseofresponsibilityandac-countability.Thataparticularbookhasbeenacquiredforthecollectionbynomeansindicatesthattheacquisitionhasbeenap-provedbylibrarymanagement.”Thebroadrangeofferedbythefoundationattractedmanyaprominentuser;beforeandduringtheFirstWorldWar,thislistincludedillus-triousfiguresfromtheinternationallabour

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movement,andinparticularfromtheRus-sianexilecommunity—amongthemLeninandTrotsky.3Duringtheinterwarperiod,agreatmanywomenwhohadbeenexiledfromfascistcountriesvisitedtheinstitution(forexample,OttoBraun,JosephWirth,AnnaSiemsen,WilhelmHoegner,Marga-reteBuber-Neumann,RudolfHilferding,RenéKönig,RobertJungk,FriedrichAdler,ManèsSperber,andIgnazioSilone);duringtheColdWar,refugeescamefromtheEast-ernBloc,amongthemNobelLaureateinLit-eratureAlexanderSolschenizyn.In1974,SwitzerlandacknowledgedtheSwissSocialArchivesasaleadingresearchinfrastructurefacilityinitssubjectarea.Asafurtherofficialvoteofconfidence,theFederalCouncilin1979appointeddirectorMiroslavTucekasthepresidentoftheEid-genössischenExpertenkommissionfürdiesozialwissenschaftlicheDokumentation(SwissExpertCommissionforSocialSci-enceDocumentation).Thesubsidizationthatcamealongwiththegovernmentalrec-ognitionmadeitpossibletoestablishanar-chivaldepartment,whosecollectionshaveincreasedsignificantlysincethe1990sandtodayencompassapproximately800corpo-ratearchivesandpersonalestates.4Anum-berofcentralorganizationsconstitutethemaintopicsoftheSocialArchives:forex-ample,importanttradeunionsandworkers’associations,politicalandculturalorganiza-tionsthatformpartofthelabourmovement,socialmovementsandassociationsfromspheressuchasfeminism,pacifism,ecol-ogy,humanrights,ortheLGBTQ*commu-nity,aswellasnon-profitorganizationsandyouthorganizationsinSwitzerland.How-ever,therearealsoarchivesofcommunist,Trotskyist,andneulinkeorganizations(NeueLinkeorNewLeft),andcollectionsfromthe

right-wingpopulistendofthespectrum,includingtheunpublishedworksofJamesSchwarzenbach,thepioneerofSwitzer-land’santi-immigrationmovementofthe1960sand1970s,andtheposterarchiveofAlexanderSegert’sadvertisingagencyGoal.Aseparateresearchfundwasestablishedin1999thankstoanextensiveinheritancefromthesocialscientistEllenRifkinHill.TheSocialArchiveshasalsosystematicallycol-lectedaudiovisualmaterialsince2003.5Atthesametime,theinstitutionalsomanagedtosuccessfullycrossoverintothedigitalagebydigitizingallofitscataloguesandfindingaids,workingonretro-digitizationprojectsformagazines,newspapers,photographs,films,videos,posters,andaudiomaterial,developinganinfrastructureforassemblingauthenticallyelectronicarchivalanddocu-mentationcollections,aswellasanumberofonlineinformationchannels.6

Theacquisitionofprivatelystoredwritten,visual,andaudiomaterialsfromsocialmove-ments—thatis,archivalmaterialofnon-gov-ernmentalorigin—heavilydependsontwobasicconditions:thedegreeofconfidenceandtrustthatthosewhocreatedtherecordshaveinthearchivalinstitution,andtherela-tionshipsthatthearchivistshavetotheper-sonalities,politicalgroups,initiatives,andorganizationsinquestion.Aspecialbondoftrustisrequiredhere,especiallywhereprevi-ousandestatecollectionsareconcerned.Asenseofconfidenceinthearchivalinstitutionisforgedinparticularthroughitsconsidera-blelevelsofcontinuityandreliability.Asfarasanoutsideperspectiveisconcerned,thearchivesneedtoatleastappeartobeabletoensurethelong-termcontinuedexistenceofthearchivesandthereforealsothearchivalmaterialstoredtherein.Theissueofsponsor-shipisalsoaddressedhere;asponsorship’s

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configurationandphilosophicalorideologi-calcharacterhasthecapacitytoeitherhelporhinderthearchive’ssustainedfundingbystateinstitutions.InthecaseoftheSwissSo-cialArchives,therewasabroad-basedspon-sorshipfromthebeginning,whichminimizedtherisksassociatedwithfinancing.Theser-vicesprovidedforthebenefitoftheorgani-zationsandindividualscreatingthearchives(suchasresearch,andscanandcopyjobs)arealsoimportantandshouldberenderedinatimely,accessible,anduncomplicatedmannerand,ifpossible,befreeofcharge.Thetechnicalexpertiseofthearchivalinsti-tutionareofcoursealsoofcrucialimpor-tance.Thepeopleresponsibleforcreatingthefilesandrecordsmustbecertainthattheinstitutioninquestionisabletoguaranteereliable,long-termpreservationofartefacts.Thesedays,thisappliestodigitaldocu-mentsinparticular.Expertiseencompassesarangeofaspects:applyingrecognizedstandards,participatinginnetworksandcollaboratingingroups,cooperatingwithpartnerinstitutions,andalsovisibility,whichinmanycasesisaprimemotivationforthesubmissionofarchivalcollections.Itisintheinterestoftheorganizationssubmittingtherecordsthattheirdocumentsbeusedforre-searchactivitiesandthatthenameoftheirorganizationbepresentinscientificcon-textsandexhibitions.Theimportantrelationship-buildingandnet-workingthatiscarriedoutbythearchivalinstitutionincludesbeingphysicallypres-entatexternalevents(suchasanniversarycelebrations)anddemonstrations,aswellasactivelyconductingpublicrelationsworkbywayofpaneldiscussions,privatebookpreviews,lectures,sourcepresentations,andparticipatinginexhibitions.Themedia-tionworkisthusperformedforthebenefit

ofthearchivalcollections,andtheindivid-ualsororganizationswhocreatedthefilesareshownthatitwasindeedworthwhiletohandovertheirdocuments,andthatthedocumentsarebeingputtogooduse.Finally,theSocialArchivesalsoendeavourtoprocureorganizationsandactivistswhogeneratedocumentsasmembersoftheboardoftrustees.Collaboratingwithactiv-istscanhaveasnowballeffectintermsofbuildingupanarchive’sinventory,becauseactivistsaresimultaneouslyarchives’bestambassadorsandthosewhoaremostfamil-iarwiththeinsandoutsoftheirrespectivemilieus.Intheidealscenario,theywouldacquirearchivalmaterialfromwithintheirownsocialorpoliticalsphere:classicexam-plesofthisaretheSchwulenarchivSchweiz(SwissGayArchives),thecollectionofstatesecurityfiles(ArchivSchnüffelstaatSchweiz),ortheSwissMusicArchives,whichdocumentstherockandpopscenes.Thesecollectionsareessentiallyfoundeduponasenseofprivateinitiativeandmakepossiblethepreservationofrecordsinsec-torsthatwouldotherwisebedifficultfortheSocialArchivestoaccess.

1  Jacqueline Häusler, 100 Jahre soziales Wissen: Schweizerisches Sozial-archiv 1906–2006, Zurich, 2006.  2  Hanspeter Marti, “Schweizerisches So-zialarchiv, Zürich”, Handbuch der historischen Buchbestände in der Schweiz, edited by Urs B. Leu et al., vol. 3, Hildesheim, 2011, pp. 317–325; Koller, Christian, “Weder Zensur noch Propaganda: Der Umgang des Schweizeri-schen Sozialarchivs mit rechtsextremem Material”, LIBREAS: Library Ideas 35, 2019, available at: https://libreas.eu/ausgabe35/koller/.  3  Christian Koller, “Bibliotheksgeschichte als histoire croisée: Das Schweizerische Sozialarchiv und das Phänomen des Exils”, Vernetztes Wissen: Online – Die Bibliothek als Managementaufgabe, edited by Rafael Ball and Stefan Wie-derkehr, Berlin, 2015, pp. 365–392.  4  Anita Ulrich, “Le ‘Schweizerisches Sozialarchiv’: Stratégies de conservation et de valorisation des archives du mouvement ouvrier”, Archives, histoire et identité du mouvement ouvrier, edited by Alda De Giorgi et al., Geneva, 2006, pp. 92–101; Urs Kälin, “Fixierte Bewegung? Soziale Bewegungen und ihre Archive”, Arbido 3, 2007, pp. 74–77.  5  Stefan Länzlinger, “Audiovisuelle Privatarchive im Schweizerischen Sozialarchiv”, Memoriav Bulletin 25, 2018, pp. 16–18.  6  Christian Koller, “Digitales Sozialarchiv: Was bisher geschah”, Sozialarchiv Info 1, 2018, pp. 12–15, available at: www.sozialarchiv. ch/2018/03/12/digitales-sozialarchiv-was-bisher-geschah/.

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Archivesareaninvaluableresource.Theyconstitutearecordofhumanactivityex-pressedindocumentaryformandassuchare indispensable testimoniesofpastevents.Theyfortifydemocracy,andtheidentitiesofindividualsandcommunities;theystrengthenhumanrights.Buttheyarealsofragileandvulnerableandinneedofprotection.Foundedin1948,theInternationalCouncilonArchives(ICA)advocatestheeffective

managementofwrittenmaterialsandthepreservation,maintenance,andaccessibil-ityoftheworld’sarchivalculturalheritage.TheICAisanimpartialNGOthatisfinancedbyits1,500membersin195countriesandfulfilsitsdutiesthroughtheactivitiescarriedoutbyitsmembers.Formorethan70yearsnow,theICAhasunitedarchivalinstitutionsandarchivistsfromallovertheworldwiththeaimofprotectingandensuringaccesstoarchives,advocatingsoundarchivemanagementpracticesandthephysicalsafeguardingofrecordedculturalheritage,creatingrecognizedstandardsandsamplesolutions,andpromotingtransnationaldia-logue,aswellastheexchangeanddissemi-nationofthisknowledgeandexpertise.As an international organization, theICAthereforeworkswithtop-leveldeci-sion-makersandinternationalorganizationslikeUNESCOandtheCouncilofEurope,andliaisescloselywithotherNGOslikeBlueShieldInternational.1

PartoftheethosoftheICAinvolvesharness-ingtheculturaldiversityofitsmembersasameansofdevelopingeffectivesolutionstoproblemsandmutuallyestablishingstand-ardsforaflexible,inventivemétier.2ThisiswhytheICAhaspublishedfourstandardsforthecataloguingofarchivalmaterialsince1994,whichhavefundamentallychangedcataloguingpractices.3

Foralongtime,theInternationalCouncilonArchiveshasdealtwiththeissueofaccesstoarchives.InthewakeofthepoliticalshiftsthatoccurredinEuropeatthebeginningofthe1990s,Europeanarchivistsformu-latedan“OutlineofaStandardEuropeanPolicyonAccesstoArchives”,whichwasadoptedbytheICAbyresolutionoftheAn-nualGeneralMeetinginEdinburghin1997.Thisresultedinthe“PrinciplesofAccess

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toArchives”,whichwereadoptedin2012.TwootherICAdocumentsemphasizetheimportanceoftheprofessionalismofarchi-valwork:the“CodeofEthicsforArchivists”

from1996,andthe“UniversalDeclarationonArchives”from2010.Thekeypointsofallthreeofthedocumentsmentionedhereareprintedbelow.

PRINCIPLES OF ACCESS TO ARCHIVES4

  1The public has the right of access to archives of public bodies. Both pu-blic and private entities should open their archives to the greatest extent possible.

  2Institutions holding archives make known the existence of the archives, including the existence of closed materials, and disclose the existence of restrictions that affect access to the archives.

  3 Institutions holding archives adopt a pro-active approach to access.

  4Institutions holding archives ensure that restrictions on access are clear and of stated duration, are based on pertinent legislation, acknowledge the right of privacy and respect the rights of owners of private materials.

  5 Archives are made available on equal and fair terms.

  6Institutions holding archives ensure that victims of serious crimes under international law have access to archives that provide evidence needed to assert their human rights and to document violations of them, even if those archives are closed to the general public.

  7 Users have the right to appeal a denial of access.

  8 Institutions holding archives ensure that operational constraints do not prevent access to archives.

  9 Archivists have access to all closed archives and perform necessary archi-val work on them.

10 Archivists participate in the decision-making process on access.

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CODE OF ETHICS FOR ARCHIVISTS5

  1 Archivists should protect the integrity of archival material and thus guaran-tee that it continues to be reliable evidence of the past.

  2Archivists should appraise, select and maintain archival material in its historical, legal and administrative context, thus retaining the principle of provenance, preserving and making evident the original relationships of documents.

  3 Archivists should protect the authenticity of documents during archival processing, preservation and use.

  4 Archivists should ensure the continuing accessibility and intelligibility of archival materials.

  5 Archivists should record, and be able to justify, their actions on archival material.

  6 Archivists should promote the widest possible access to archival material and provide an impartial service to all users.

  7 Archivists should respect both access and privacy, and act within the boundaries of relevant legislation.

  8 Archivists should use the special trust given to them in the general interest and avoid using their position to unfairly benefit themselves or others.

  9Archivists should pursue professional excellence by systematically and continuously updating their archival knowledge, and sharing the results of their research and experience.

10Archivists should promote the preservation and use of the world’s docu-mentary heritage, through working co-operatively with the members of their own and other professions.

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UNESCO UNIVERSAL DECLARATION ON ARCHIVES6

Archivesrecorddecisions,actionsandmemories.Archivesareauniqueandirre-placeableheritagepassedfromonegen-erationtoanother.Archivesaremanagedfromcreationtopreservetheirvalueandmeaning.Theyareauthoritativesourcesofinformationunderpinningaccountableandtransparentadministrativeactions.Theyplayanessentialroleinthedevelopmentofsocietiesbysafeguardingandcontributingtoindividualandcommunitymemory.Openaccesstoarchivesenrichesourknowledgeofhumansociety,promotesdemocracy,protectscitizens’rightsandenhancesthequalityoflife.

To this effect, we recognize:

The unique quality ofarchivesasau-thenticevidenceofadministrative,culturalandintellectualactivitiesandasareflectionoftheevolutionofsocieties;

The vital necessity ofarchivesforsupportingbusinessefficiency,accountabil-ityandtransparency,forprotectingcitizens’rights,forestablishingindividualandcol-lectivememory,forunderstandingthepast,andfordocumentingthepresenttoguidefutureactions;

The diversity of archives inrecord-ingeveryareaofhumanactivity;

The multiplicity of formatsinwhicharchivesarecreatedincludingpaper,elec-tronic,audiovisualandothertypes;

The role of archivistsastrainedpro-fessionalswithinitialandcontinuingeduca-tion,servingtheirsocietiesbysupportingthecreationofrecordsandbyselecting,maintainingandmakingtheserecordsavail-ableforuse;

The collective responsibility of all—citizens,publicadministratorsandde-cision-makers,ownersorholdersofpublicorprivatearchives,andarchivistsandotherinformationspecialists—inthemanage-mentofarchives.

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We therefore undertake to work toge-ther in order that

Appropriatenationalarchivalpoliciesandlawsareadoptedandenforced; Themanagementofarchivesisvaluedandcarriedoutcompetentlybyallbodies,privateorpublic,whichcreateandusear-chivesinthecourseofconductingtheirbusiness; Adequateresourcesareallocatedtosupportthepropermanagementofar-chives,includingtheemploymentoftrainedprofessionals; Archivesaremanagedandpreservedinwaysthatensuretheirauthenticity,relia-bility,integrityandusability; Archivesaremadeaccessibletoevery-one,whilerespectingthepertinentlawsandtherightsofindividuals,creators,ownersandusers; Archivesareusedtocontributetothepromotionofresponsiblecitizenship.

1  Blue Shield International is an international organization that is affiliated with UNESCO and is based in The Hague. The organization is dedicated to protecting cultural assets from the effects of war, armed conflict, and di-saster.  2  https://www.ica.org/en/deutsch  3  1994: ISAD(G), available at: https:// de.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISAD(G); 1996: ISAAR(CPF), available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISAAR(CPF); 2008: ISDF und ISDIAH, available at: https://vsa-aas. ch/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Normen-katalog_Version1-3_201312.pdf bzw. https://vsa-aas.ch/wp-content/up-loads/2015/06/ISDIAH_-_Inter- nationaler_Standard_fuer_die_Verzeich-nung_von_Archivinstitutionen. pdf; sowie 2016: RiC (Records in Content), available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Records_in_Contexts  4  In the spring of 2010, the ICA’s Best Practices and Standards Committee commis-sioned a group of archivists to draw up a document on best practices for public access to both governmental and non-governmental archives. This resulted in the “Principles of Access to Archives”, which were adopted by the ICA’s annual meeting on 24 August 2012; see https://www.ica.org/sites/default/files/ICA_Access-principles_EN.pdf.  5  Code of Ethics for Archi-vists, adopted by the General Assembly of the International Congress on Archives on 6 September 1996 in Beijing, status: January 1997, available at: https://www.ica.org/sites/default/files/ICA_1996-09-06_code%20of%20ethics_EN.pdf  6  UNESCO Universal Declaration on Archives, adopted at the 36th session of the UNESCO General Conference on 10 November 2011, available at: https://www.ica.org/sites/default/files/20190510_ica_decla-rationuniverselle_en_0.pdf

TWENTY-YEAR ARCHIVES OF THE ROSA-LUXEMBURG-STIFTUNG

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FILES SITTING ON THE SHELVES OF STRANGERS?

OnasunnyTuesday,on21June1999,Eve-linWittichandItravelledtoBonn—sheasthemanagingdirectoroftheRosa-Luxem-burg-Stiftung(RLS),andIasaboardmem-berwhosetaskwastotendtoissuesper-tainingtoarchives—inordertonegotiatewiththeadministrationoftheGermanBun-destagandtheparliamentaryarchiveoverfinancialmatters.ThetopicontheagendawastheuseoffundsfromtheBundestag’sprojecttitledAufbereitungundErhaltungzeitgeschichtlichbedeutsamerArchivalien(ProcessingandPreservingArchivalDocu-mentsSignificanttoContemporaryHistory)fromGermanparliamentarianswhichtheRLSwasentitledtoreceive.ThePDSdel-egates’writtenmaterialfromthelastGDRVolkskammerandfromthelasttwoBunde-stagelectionperiodswastobemadeacces-siblewithintheframeworkoftheproject.Wemanagedtoquicklyresolvethequestion

ofusingtheportionoftheprojectfundsre-servedforstaffcosts.Butwhenitcametothematerialcosts,adisputearosebetweentheadvisorfromtheBundestag’sadminis-trationandtheheadoftheparliamentaryarchives.TheBundestagrepresentativewasanxioustousethebudgetitemtoitsfullestextentandwasthereforeoftheopinionthattheADS’sarchiveshelvescouldalsobepaidforoutoftheportionofthebudgetdesig-natedformaterialcosts.“No”,respondedtheheadoftheparliamentaryarchives,“theshelveshavealwaysbeenfinancedusingthefoundation’sgeneralfunds.”“But”,saidtheBundestagrepresentative,“thenallyourfileswillendupbeingstoredontheshelvesoftheFederalMinistryoftheInterior.”“Thatdoesn’tmatter”,washisterseresponse.Andsotheshelves(andlaterthemobileshelvingsystemformagazines)werepaidforusingthegeneralfundsoftheRLS.

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FRAGMENTS OF MEMORY

1  Carolyn Hamilton and Xolela Mangcu, Freedom: Public Delibera-tion and the Archive, published by the Public Intellectual Life Project of the Nelson Mandela Founda-tion, 2006, p. 2.

ARCHIVAL WORK IN SOUTH AFRICA

“Theroleofarchiveinreconciliation,develop-

mentandidentitypoliticsiscentral,notonlyin

addressingthepast,butalsoinimaginingand

facilitatingthefuture.”1

Thisassessmentofthesignificanceofarchives

appliesnotonlytothecontextofSouthAfrica,

butforarchiveseverywhere.

Overtheyears,theexpertopinionofarchive

managershasrepeatedlybeenrequestedforar-

chiveprojectsbothhereinGermanyandabroad.

Wewerehappytoacquiescetothisrequest.In

2003,theRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungopenedits

firstforeignofficeinJohannesburg,SouthAf-

rica.TheCentreforInternationalDialogueand

Cooperation,whichisresponsiblefortheFoun-

dation’soverseaswork,begansupportingedu-

cationalprojectsinsouthernAfricaevenbackin

thepreparatoryphaseleadinguptotheofficial

openingoftheoffice.Amongourfirstproject

partnerswereKhanyaCollegeinJohannesburg

andtheLabourResearchServiceinCapeTown;

subsequentadditionalprojectpartnersincluded

theSouthAfricanHistoryArchiveandthear-

chiveoftheCongressofSouthAfricanTrade

Unions(COSATU).TheSouthAfricanLabour

HistoryProjectwaslaunchedin2001incol-

laborationwithKhanyaCollegeandtheLabour

ResearchServiceinordertopromotecommu-

nication,cooperation,andnetworkingamong

activistsinthetradeunionsector.Theproject

wasfundedfrom2001to2006andservedto

constructanonlinearchiveoftheSouthAfri-

canlabourmovementintheperiodfrom1966

to1979.In2002,theprojectwasintegrated

intoaregionalprojectconductedinsouthern

AfricabytheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungtitled

GesellschaftspolitischeMaßnahmen(Sociopo-

liticalMeasures).

Inthatinstance,theworkofgatheringexpert

opinionshadalreadycommencedbeforethe

projectbegan.ProjectenvoystravelledtoBer-

lin,andweweretaskedwithprovidingthem

withaninsightintoourworkandwithorgan-

izingvisitsandeventsinculturalinstitutions

withonlinepresentationsinwhichwecouldex-

changeourexperiences.Afteritcommenced

inCapeTownandJohannesburg,theproject

receivedprofessionalsupport,anditsprogres-

sionandresultswereevaluatedonsite.This

demonstratedtousthatthetoolsneededto

marketsuchaprojectdiffersignificantlybe-

tweenEuropeandAfrica.Forexample,inAf-

rica,radioprogrammesstillenjoyahighlevel

ofdistribution,whichiswhyinterviewsand

featureprogrammesarecommonlyusedasa

meansofpublicizingmatterspertainingtothe

projectandofadvertisingthesupplementation

ofthearchivalcollection.Becauseaccessto

theinternetwasnotguaranteedeverywhere,

wewerealsograntedtherighttoprovideCDs

containingprominenteventsofthelabour

movementsuchasmassstrikesasameansof

furtherdisseminatingtheknowledgegleaned

fromthearchivaldocuments.

ThestudyofSouthAfrica’sarchivallandscape

andourworkinaconsultingcapacityforanum-

berofarchivalprojectsbroughtusintocontact

withvocationalcolleges,whichinvitedusto

attendworkshops,discussiongroups,andcon-

ferences.Conferencesliketheonethatwasor-

ganizedin2006bytheSouthernAfricaOfficein

collaborationwithaprojectpartnerundertheti-

tleMemory,HeritageandThePublicInterestled

tothedevelopmentofaspecialresearchinterest

andabroadeningoftheviewofthesignificance

ofarchives.

CHRISTINE GOHSMANN

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ONLY A “THIN BOOKLET”

Wehadourfirstfindingaid,whichhadbeencompiledonthesubjectofthePDS-FraktioninderVolkskammerderDDR(PDSParlia-mentaryGroupintheGDRPeople’sParlia-ment,MarchtoOctober1990),printedinalimitededitionof100copiesandboundasabrochureinA5format.Afterwehadsentthefindingaid,statusreport,andthereportontheexpenditureofthefundstotheBun-destagadministrationpunctuallyattheendofMarch2000,IcalledMsHandke-Lep-tien,theheadofthebudgetaryunitoftheGermanBundestagadministration,inApril2000toenquireastowhethereverythinghadarrived.“Yes”,respondedMsHand-ke-Leptien.Thefindingaidwasmerelya“thinbooklet”,shesaid,onlytofollowthisobservationupwithareassuringcomment:“Youonlyhadthreemonths’time.”Aha,Isaidtomyself,thedirectorofthebudgetaryunitclearlyhopedtoseesomethingmoresubstantialinreturnforthemoneyshehaddoledoutfortheproject.Inthespringof2000,ChristineGohsmannthenpavedthewayforourfledglingpartyarchivestobecomeintegratedintothebroaderarchivallandscapeandestablished

therelevantcontacts.WevisitedtheAr-chivdersozialenDemokratie(ArchiveofSocialDemocracy,AdsD)inBonnandtheGreenMemoryArchive(AGG)inBornheimtogetherinMay2000;thesecontactsandexperienceswereofimmensebenefittousintermsofcomingtogripswiththeBundestagproject.Afterall,welivedfromthisproject.Duringthesevisits,wetooktheopportunitytoinspectthefindingaidsthathadbeencompiledtherefortheBun-destagadministration:eachofthemwasalargevolumeinA4formatwithtextprintedonlyononesideofthepageandmadeuseofspacioustextlayout;theAdsD’sfindingaidswereboundinbrick-redimi-tationleather,andtheAGG’sfindingaidswerewrappedinjacketsofgreenimitationleather,andthetitleswererenderedinsil-verscript.Asaresultofthesearchivevis-its,weoptedtoproducefutureversionsoftheADS’sfindingaidsfortheBundestagadministrationinanA4formatwithsin-gle-sidedtext,butinordertoensuretheystandout,wehaveourproductboundindeepredimitationleather,withthetitleren-deredinblacktext.

JOCHEN WEICHOLD

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FRAGMENTS OF MEMORY

CHRISTINE GOHSMANN

“BUT EVERYTHING IS ONLINE!” – AS AN ITINERANT PREACHER IN BRUSSELS

InNovember2013,attheannualconfer-enceoftheInternationalCouncilonAr-chivesinBrussels,weweregiventheop-portunitytomeetourcolleaguesfromtheRegionalOfficefortheEuropeanUnionoftheRosa-Luxemburg-StiftunginBrussels,aswellastopayavisittothestaffoftheleft-wingdelegationoftheUnitedEuro-peanLeft/NordicGreenLeft(GUE/NGL)politicalgroupintheEuropeanParliament.Itwasonthisoccasionthattheideawasbornoforganizingaworkshopthefollow-ingyearforthemembersofparliamentandtheiroffices.Ittooksomepersistenceandanendlessbarrageofemailsandtelephonecallsbeforewewerefinallyabletosettleonadatefortheworkshop,whichweagreedwouldtakeplaceinBrusselsinMay2014.WeenteredtheEuropeanParliamentinpairsandpre-sentedourwork.Westartedbyexplainingthatourarchivesatthetimeonlycontainedalimitednumberofdocumentsfromtheworkconductedbytheleft-wingdelegationintheGUE/NGL;weendeavouredtoimpressuponthemourdesiretoachievethebroad-estpossibletransmissionofthegroup’swork,whileatthesametimereferringtotherangeofgoodsandservicesprovidedbythearchive.Afteransweringseveralquestions,weacceptedaninvitationtovisitsomeofthemembers’offices.

Ourvisittotheofficesprovideduswithanexcellentopportunitytofamiliarizeour-selveswiththemembers’workingmethodsandwiththeirverydistinctivepropensityforstoringtheresultsoftheirworkinanana-logueordigitalformat.Often“only”thefi-nalversionofthepaperswasavailableonthewebsiteduetothechieflyelectronicnatureoftheexchangeonthetopicsofthepapersthatweretobecompiled.Informa-tionpertainingtoprocessingstagesandpreparatoryworkwasbarelyeverstoredintheelectronicrecords,truetotheslo-gan“Everythingisonline!”Ameetingwiththoseresponsibleforthedelegation’smediaandpublicrelationsworkhadalsobeenar-ranged,andwewereabletoaddtoourcol-lectionsintheperiodthatfollowed.AmongthearrangementsmadewasanagreementthatthemarketingandcommunicationscompanyMedia-ServiceGmbH,basedinBerlinatFranz-Mehring-Platz1,wouldinfu-turesubmitonecopyofalladvertisingmate-rialproducedforBrusselstotheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismforarchiving.OncebackinBerlin,wereportedontheworkshopandthespecificfeaturesofthiscollection.Theworkshophadonceagainconvincedusthatitisfirstandforemostper-sonalcontactsthatinspireininstitutionsandindividualstheconfidenceneededtoentrustanarchivewiththeirrecords.

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THE AUTUMN MEETINGS

Therewerenolawsorregulationsstipulat-ingtheobligatorysubmissionofdocumentstotheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismsowehadtotendtothetaskofincreasingthenumberofdocumentsofarchivalvalueourselves.AsemployeesoftheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism,wehavealwaysconsideredourselvestoperformtheroleofmediatorbetweenthosewho“produce”thedocumentsandthepotentialusersofthoserecords.Wesawourselvesasresponsibleforthetasksofadvisingthecreatorsintheprocessofgeneratingthefiles,aswellasintermsofsafeguardingandacquisition,andevaluating,preserving,andutilizingthedoc-uments.Inordertoestablishthenecessarycontactwiththoseresponsibleforthearchives,weinvitedthoseinchargetoaseriesofannualautumnmeetingsinvolvingthepartyexec-utiveofthePDS,itsregionalassociations,Landesstiftungen(regionalfoundations)andassociationsaffiliatedwiththePDS,aswellastheBundestagparliamentarygroupofthePDS,whichsubsequentlybecamethepolit-icalpartyDieLinke.Theautumnmeetingsbeganwithameet-inginBerlin,wheretheworkoftheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismwaspresented,

includingthearchivepremisesandthear-chivingsoftware.Inlateryears,themeet-ingsledustotheparliamentarygroupDieLinkeintheGermanBundestag,tothear-chiveofDieLinke’spartyexecutiveinBerlin,tostateparliamentaryfactionsofDieLinke,totheregionalofficesoftheRosa-Luxem-burg-StiftunginavarietyoffederalGermanstates,totheClaraZetkinmemorialinBirk-enwerder,andtotheStiftungArchivederParteienundMassenorganisationenderDDR(FoundationArchivesofPartiesandMassOrganizations,SAPMO)inthefederalarchivesintheBerlindistrictofLichterfelde.Theobjectiveoftheautumnmeetingswasforthoseinchargeofarchivestosharein-formationaboutthecollectionsforwhichtheywereresponsible,aswellasthework-ingconditionsandtheopportunitiesforutilizingtherecordsonsite.Thelocationofeachmeetingortheinstitutionthatwouldbehostingitwasincludedinthecontentdesignofthemeeting.Thisenabledthepar-ticipantstobecomefamiliarwithanumberofdifferentstateparliamentarylibraries;forexample,theyweregivenaguidedtourofSchwerinCastle,whichistheseatofthestateparliament,andwerebriefedontheworkconductedbytheLandesstiftungen.Theexchangeofexperiencesbetweenthe

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FRAGMENTS OF MEMORY

participatingarchivistsdrewuponfieldre-ports,andwassupplementedbyspecialistarticles.Overtheyears,theworkconductedonthecollectionsoftheMecklenburg-Vor-pommernPDS(from1989to2007)consist-entlyplayedaroleinanumberofdifferentways,untiltheautumnmeetingconductedinSchwerinin2016,wherethefindingaidswerefinallypresentedtothoseresponsibleforpartydevelopmentinMecklenburg-Vor-pommern;here,thefindingaidswereabletobeassessedintermsofuser-friendlinessandvalidity.Theresponsewasoverwhelm-inglypositive.Theautumnmeetingthattookplacein2014intheKäteDunckerroom,DieLinke’smeetingroomintheregionalparliamentofThuringiainErfurt,andthemeetingin2016intheofficeoftheSchwerinparliamentarygroupwerededicatedtotherecentstateelections.Aninitialanalysisofeachparty’selectionresultsandareportonthestateofthecoalitionnegotiationsinThuringiapro-videdthemeetingswithaveryup-to-dateframework.Thehighlightofthe2010autumnmeetingwaswhenaharddrivecontainingdatabasespertainingtoDieLinkeintheGermanBunde-stagfromtheBundestag’s16thelectiontermwasphysicallyhandedovertothedirectoroftheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism.

CHRISTINE GOHSMANN

IN CONTRAST TO THE ARCHIVES OF KING SOLOMON

Sincetimeimmemorial,thegeneralpublichasassociatedarchiveswithdust.InhisbookThe King David Report,writerStefanHeymoutlinesthestateofchaosinwhichtheroyalarchivefounditself;storedinasta-blethathadbeenbuilttohouseKingSolo-mon’shorses.Inthesearchives,whichcon-sistedofpilesofclaytabletsstackedontopofeachother,coveredwithdustandcob-webs,andnumerousleatherscrollsstrewnaboutinastateofterribledisorder,onewouldsearchfortherecordsofKingDavid’sscribe,Seraiah—apursuitthatwasatfirst,unsurprisingly,futile.Thesituationwassignificantlydifferentwithregardtothedocumentsthattwoemploy-eesfromtheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung,whichwasstillinitsdevelopmentalphaseatthetime,receivedinJuly1999fromtheinformationanddocumentationunitofthePDSparliamentarygroupintheGermanBundestag.ThedocumentsfromthePDSinthelastPeople’sParliamenttotakeplacetheGDRin1990andthosefromthePDSintheBundestagfromthe12thand13thelectiontermshadbeenclearlyfiledovertheyearsinLeitzfoldersandstoredinadust-freeenvironmentinbuilt-incupboardsintheBundeshaus(federalparliamentbuild-ing)inBonn.ThisacquisitionoffileslaidthematerialfoundationfortheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismAttheendof1999,wecounted28.1runningmetresofarchivalrecords.

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“ARCHIVES AREN’T PROFITABLE, BUT THEY DO PAY OFF!”1

Theadvantagesofanarchiveforanorgan-izationmightnotalwaysbeimmediatelyapparent,becauseanorganization’shistoryisnotnecessarilythefocusofthearchivalworkatthetimewhenanarchiveisfirstcreated.Archiviststhereforenevertireofexplainingtheirworkin-house,ofofferingguidedtoursofthestorerooms,orofas-sistingindevelopingfilingplans,aswellasdevelopingstandardsforthehandoverofdocumentstothearchive.Fortheirpart,thedepartmentswouldap-proachthestaffatthearchiveonspecificoccasions:forexample,whenolderfileswereinthewayduringthemovesthatre-peatedlytookplacewithinthebuilding;whentheworkconductedbythevariousdepartmentswaspresentedattheMarktderMöglichkeiten(MarketofOpportuni-ties)duringconferencesforoverseasem-ployees;orwhentheintroductoryseminaroftheRLS’sStudienwerkwasplanned.InAprilandOctobereveryyear,wewelcomethenewscholarshipholders,whichusuallyentailstheirspendingtwodaysasguestsattheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung,familiarizingthemselveswiththefoundationanditsvar-

DETAILED FORENSIC WORK

In2001,wehadamodernmobileshelvingsystembuiltintoourstoreroomintheofficebuildingatFranz-Mehring-Platz1;firstcametheinitialconstructionphase,andthenthesecondphasetookplaceinthefirsthalfof2002.Wehadexpectedthatthenewsystemwouldprovideuswithsufficientspacetobeabletoproperlyandprofessionallystorenewarchivalmaterialforfourorfiveyears.ButthenthePDSwaskickedoutoftheBun-destagduringthefederalelectionintheautumnof2002.AndattheendofOctober2002,tworemovalvansparkedinfrontofthebuildingandunloadedvastnumbersofmovingboxescontainingfiles.Theyfilledtheentirefoyer,andittookusseveralweekstofirstclassifytheremovalboxesandthenthedocumentfoldersaccordingtothemember(s)ofparliamenttowhichtheypertained—anundertakingthatsometimesinvolvedaconsiderableamountofdetailedforensicwork—andthenfinallytoorganizetherecords.Ourstoreroomwiththenewmobileshelv-ingsystemwasnowfilledtothebrim.WeacceptedtheoffermadebytheKirchlichesZentralarchivBerlin(CentralEcclesiasti-calArchive)tostoreanyfurtherrecordsandalsorentedadditionalshelfspaceinthenewlyestablishedarchivebuildingonBethaniendamm.Sincethen,ourarchivalmaterialhasbeenspreadoutacrossthetwolocations.

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FRAGMENTS OF MEMORY

iousdepartments,andwhatthesedepart-mentshavetooffer.Thearchiveandlibraryweremergedtogethertoformonesingledepartment.Thismergeralsoinvolvedtheguidedtoursthroughthemainsharedstore-roomandtheinformationpertainingtothecollectionsandtheirpotentialuses,espe-ciallyinrelationtoarchivesorlibraries.Theparticipantswerekeenlyinterestedandcon-tinuallyrespondedwithquestions.Unsur-prisingly,wewerealsooftenaskedwhetherthearchivewasalsohometoRosaLuxem-burg’swrittenlegacy,towhichwehadtorespondthatno,itwasnot.Butwewereatleastabletodrawthevisitors’attentiontotheextensivelibrarycollectionlocatedonthesamepremisescontainingliteraturebyandaboutRosaLuxemburg.Inadditiontotheguidedtours,aworkshopwasofferedoveranumberofyearsthatwasconductedintwogroupsusingarchivalmaterials(copiesoforiginaldocuments).Aseriesofhighlysignificantandinforma-tivedocumentspertainingtoherlifeandworkwereselectedfromthecollectionsofJürgenDemloff,arepresentativeintheVolkskammer,andChristaLuft,amember

oftheBundestag.CorrespondingvideoswerealsoshownofherappearancesintheVolkskammerandtheGermanBundestag,thecontentsofwhichthescholarshiphold-ersanalyzedandthenpresentedtoeachother.Thisallowedthescholarshipholderstogainanimpressionofthedocuments’significanceandgavethemaninsightintotheworkconductedbythearchivists.Overthecourseofthescholarship,someofthescholarshipholdersreturnedtothearchiveandlibrary.ItwasjustasimportantfortheStudienwerktohaveimmediateaccesstothescholar-shipholders’documentsasitwasforthosefundingtheprojecttohaveaccesstothefilescontainingtheapprovalsorrejectionsofprojectproposals.Notallemployeesim-mediatelywarmedtothenewformusedbythearchivistsforthepurposesoflog-gingeachnewsubmissionofdocuments,buttheyhavesincegrownaccustomedtoitsuseovertheyears.ResearchconductedinpreparationforanniversariesoftheRo-sa-Luxemburg-Stiftunghasillustratedhowsignificantthefilingsystemactuallyisforthehistoryofourownorganization.

1  Quoted from Katharina Tiemann in Der Archivar, vol. 3, 2005, p. 196.

CHRISTINE GOHSMANN

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A LAST-MINUTE VISIT

MsNelles,whoisresponsibleforimple-mentingtheBundestagprojectintheparlia-mentaryarchives,registeredatshortnoticetovisitourarchiveson15November2001.ItcertainlywouldhavebeenveryhelpfultohaveourcolleagueChristineGohsmannthereonthatoccasion;atthetime,shewastheonlyarchivistinoursmallarchiveandlibrarydepartmentwhohadarelevantde-greefromauniversityofappliedsciences.However,onthedayinquestion,herteach-ingcommitmentsmeantthatshewasattheFachhochschulePotsdamandwasthere-foreunabletobepresent.“Goodadviceisexpensive.”Orsothesayinggoes.Ourli-brarianUweMichelandInotonlyremovedtheunsightlymovingboxesfromthestore-room,butalsoboughtcoffee,pastries,andsparklingwaterinordertocreateapleasantatmosphereduringourinitialconversationswithMsNelles.WethendemonstratedourarchivingsoftwareAUGIAS-Archiv,which

weusedastheonlypartyarchiveofthepar-tiesrepresentedintheBundestag.(Atthattime,allotherpartyarchiveswereworkingwiththeFAUSTarchivingsoftware.)Finally,wepresentedarchivalmaterialfromtheBundestagprojectthathadbeenindexedinthestoreroomonasamplebasis.WewereabletoconvinceMsNellesbywayofavisualinspectionthattheworkdetailedintheannualreportsforthepreviousyearshadactuallybeencarriedout:removingallmetalcomponents,foliatingthesheetsoftheunitsofdescription,andtransferringthemfromtheiroriginalfoldersintoacid-freearchiveportfoliosandcontainersforarchivalmate-rials,andapplyingup-to-dateshelfmarkstothefoldersandcontainers.MsNelleswasalsoabletoverifythatthearchivalmateri-alshadbeenstoredinaccordancewiththeregulations,therebyallowingustoclearanimportanthurdleintermsofsecuringfuturefundingfortheADS.

JOCHEN WEICHOLD

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Dr Dietmar Bartsch,borninStralsundin1958,isaneconomistandamemberoftheGermanBundestag.Heactedastreasurerandfederalwhipformanyyears,forthePDSandlaterforDieLinkspartei.PDS,orthepartyDieLinke.Hehasbeenthechair-personoftheDieLinkeparliamentarygroupsinceOctober2015.

Friedrich Burschel,bornin1965,isanhis-torianandpoliticalscientistwhoworksfortheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungasanadvisorfocussingonneo-Nazismandthestructuresandideologiesofinequality.HesupportedtheNSUTrialinMunichthroughhisworkasanemployeeatNSU-Watchandasacorre-spondentforRadioLOTTEinWeimar.Heisalsoanauthorandwritestheantifra*blog.

Peter Delis,bornin1951,wasafull-timeemployeeoftheGermanPeaceUnionuntil1990aftercompletinghisbusinessadminis-trationdegree.Inthemid-1980s,hebecamethestatemajorityleaderinRhineland-Palat-inateandSaarland,andlaterinHesse.HeworkedastheadvisorforallianceworkforDieLinkeintheHessianstateparliamentfrom2008to2014.HeworksasavolunteerattheFriedens-undZukunftswerkstatte.V.

Prof Dr Alex Demirovic,socialscientistandassociateprofessorattheGoetheUni-versityFrankfurt,isaseniorfellowoftheRLS,memberoftheScientificAdvisoryBoardoftheRLSandcurrentlyitschair-person,memberoftheScientificAdvisoryBoardofAttacandoftheBunddemokra-tischerWissenschaftlerinnenundWissen-schaftler(FederationofDemocraticScien-tists).HislatestprintpublicationsincludeWirtschaftsdemokratie neu denken (Re-thinkingEconomicDemocracy),published

togetherwithSusanneLettowandAndreaMaihoferin2018,andEmanzipation(Eman-cipation),publishedin2019.

Dr Dagmar Enkelmann,bornin1956,isaqualifiedhistorianandhasbeenthechairoftheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungsince2012.Duringtheperiodofpoliticalchange,shewasactivelyinvolvedinroundtablediscus-sionsandwaselectedtotheVolkskammeroftheGDR.SherepresentedthePDS,orratherthepartyDieLinke,asamemberoftheGermanBundestagandtheBranden-burgstateparliamentforanumberofparlia-mentaryterms.From2005to2013,shewastheparliamentarywhipoftheBundestagpoliticalgroupDieLinke.

Bärbel Förster,bornin1959,studiedHis-toryandArchivalSciencesinLeipzigandBerlin.SheworkedattheSaxonStateAr-chiveinDresdenfrom1984to1994,andthenworkedintheFederalArchivesofSwit-zerlandinBernandZurichinaleadershipandprojectmanagementrole(from1995),andintheSwissDanceArchives(2008),aswellasintheFederalDepartmentforForeignAffairs(from2009),andtheStateSecretariatforEconomicAffairs(from2015)intheareaofbusinessadministrationandarchiving.From1999to2008,shewasapart-timelec-turerininformationscienceinChur,Zurich,andtheUniversityofBern/Lausanne.ShehasbeenthedirectoroftheRosa-Luxem-burg-Stiftung’sarchivesince1March2019.

Wolfgang Gehrcke,bornin1943,isapol-iticianwhohasalsoworkedasanadmin-istrativeassistantandjournalist.HewasamemberoftheGermanBundestagfrom1998to2002,andagainfrom2005to2017.HejoinedtheKPDin1961,andin1968he

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cofoundedtheSocialistGermanWorkersYouth(SDAJ)andwasjointlyresponsibleforinitiatingtheAldermastonMarchesandthenewpeacemovement.HewasafoundingmemberoftheDKPin1968andwaspartyexecutivefrom1973to1989.In1990,hecofoundedthePDSinWestGermanyandwasitsgeneralsecretaryfrom1991to1993,andthenitsfederaldeputychairpersonfrom1993to1998.HeisafoundingmemberofthePartyoftheEuropeanLeft.

Dr Margret Geitner,bornin1963,isthechairofDieLinkeparliamentarygroupintheHam-burgcityparliament,politicalscientist,formeradvisorforforeignpolicyoftheleft-wingpar-liamentarygroupintheBundestag.Shehasbeenactivelyengagedinanumberofdiffer-entinternationalistandanti-racistgroupsformanyyears(keinmenschistillegal,WelcometoEurope,andw2e,amongothers).

Claudia Gohde,bornin1958,istheman-agerofthefederalofficeofthepartyDieLinke.ShestudiedTheology,Ethnology,andGermanPhilologyinGöttingenand,inhercapacityasamediatorandorganizationalconsultant,oversawtheorganizationaldevelopmentoftheLinkspartei,aswellastheprocessoftheparty’smergerwiththeWASG.ShewasthepartyexecutiveofthePSDfrom1991to1997andisamemberoftheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung.

Christine Gohsmann,bornin1962,isacertifiedarchivist.ShehasworkedwitharchivesinBerlinandBrandenburgsince1985,andhasbeenemployedbytheRo-sa-Luxemburg-Stiftungsince1999,wheresheworkedasarchivedirectorandactingarchivedirectoruntil2016.ShehasbeenaresearchassistantattheHistoricalCentre

forDemocraticSocialismsince2017.In2018,shegraduatedfromtheFreieUniver-sitätBerlinwithadegreeinEditing(M.A.).

Dr Gregor Gysi,borninBerlinin1948,isalawyer,skilledlabourerintheareaofcattlefarming,andmemberoftheGermanBun-destag.HewasamemberoftheVolkskam-meroftheGDRfrom1990onwardsandwasthechairofthePDSparliamentarygroup.Fromtheendof1990untilJanuary2002,hewasthechairofthegroup,orratherthepar-liamentarygroupofthePDS,andwasthechairofthepartyDieLinkeintheGermanBundestagfromOctober2005toOctober2015.InDecember2016,hewaselectedthepresidentofthePartyoftheEuropeanLeft.Hecurrentlyworksasalawyerandpublicist.

Thomas Händel, bornin1953,isthevicechairoftheRLS.Anelectricianbytrade,hestudiedattheAkademiederArbeitinFrankfurtamMain.HewasamemberoftheSPDfrom1972to2004,andfrom2005to2007wasthemanagingdirectorandfederaltreasureroftheWASG,whichmergedwiththePDSin2007tobecomethepartyDieLinke.From2009to2019,hewasaleft-wingrepresentativeintheEuropeanParliamentandchairpersonoftheemploymentcommittee.From1979onwards,heworkedontheexecutiveboardofIGMetallandwasthegeneralmanageroftheIGMetallinFürthfrom1987to2012.

Bernd Hüttner,bornin1966,isapoliticalscientistandworksasanadvisorforcon-temporaryhistoryandpoliticsofmemoryattheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung.In1999,hefoundedtheArchiveofSocialMovementsinBremen.HeisamemberoftheHistoricalCommissiononthefederalexecutiveboardofthepartyDieLinke,oftheinternational

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advisoryboardoftheInternationalCon-ferenceofLabourandSocialHistory(ITH),andoftheexecutiveboardoftheGermanLabourHistoryAssociation.

Urs Kälin,bornin1959,studiedHistory,ModernGermanLiterature,andPoliticalThe-oryattheUniversityofZurichandcompletedhisdoctoratein1991withRudolfBraun.From1992to1996,hewasaresearchas-sociateoftheSwissUniversityConferenceinBern,andsince1996hehasbeenthevice-directoroftheSwissSocialArchivesinZurich.HeisanexecutivepoliticianandisthemayorofAltdorfinthecantonofUri.

Prof Dr Christian Kollerwasbornin1971andstudiedHistory,Economics,andPoliticalScience.HeworkedasalecturerattheBan-gorUniversityintheUKfrom2007to2014,wasafellowoftheRoyalHistoricalSocietyfrom2010,andwasalsoanhonorarypro-fessorofModernHistoryattheUniversityofZurich.HehasbeenthedirectoroftheSwissSocialArchivessince2014.Hehascontrib-utedtonumerouspublicationspertainingtothehistoryofnationalismandracism,historicalsemantics,sportshistory,socialmovements,industrialrelations,historyofviolence,militaryhistory,historyofintercul-turalcontactandculturesofmemory.

Jan Korte,bornin1977,studiedPoliticalScience,History,andSociologyattheUni-versityofHannover.Hehasbeenamem-beroftheGermanBundestagsince2005andhasbelongedtotheexecutiveboardoftheDieLinkeparliamentarygroupsince2009;hehasalsobeenitspartymanagersince2017.In2014,hewaselectedtotheexecutiveboardoftheRosa-Luxem-burg-Stiftung

Dr Anja Kruke managestheArchivesofSocialDemocracyoftheFriedrich-Ebert-Stiftung,whichalsoincludesthehousewhereKarlMarxwasborn,whereanewpermanentexhibitionhasbeenondisplaysince2018.Sheisanhistorianandpub-lishescontentondifferenttopicsfromthe19thandaboveallthe20thcentury.

Andreas Marquetmanagesthedepart-mentofdigitaltransformationoftheArchiveofSocialDemocracyasChiefDigitalOfficer.Asanhistorianandinformationscientist,hisfocussesofinterestlieincontemporaryhis-toryandthepointsofintersectionbetweendigitalmethodsofresearchandarchiving.

Uwe Michel,bornin1962,studiedLiter-aryStudiesandPhilosophyinPerugia,Italy.HetrainedtobecomealibrarianattheFreieUniversitätBerlinandhasbeenresponsiblefortheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung’slibrarysince2001.HealsosupervisestheseriesofeventstitledLinkeLiteraturimGespräch(DiscussingLeft-WingLiterature)andworkscloselywiththearchivistsfromtheArchivesforDemocraticSocialism.

Petra PauwasborninBerlin1963.ShewasamemberoftheSEDandjoinedthePDSin1990,wheresheheldthepositionofstatepartyleaderforBerlinfortenyearsandwasthevice-chairpersonattheturnofthemil-lennium.In1990,shewaselectedtotheHellersdorfdistrictassemblyand,in1995,waselectedtotheBerlinHouseofRepre-sentatives.Since1998,shehaswonsixdirectmandatesfortheGermanBundestagandhasbeenitsvice-presidentsince2006.Asapoliti-cianfocussingoninternalaffairs,shefightsforcivilrightsanddemocracy,andagainstright-wingextremism,racism,andantisemitism.

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Bernd Riexinger,bornin1955,trainedasabankerandwastradeunionsecretaryintheBaden-Württembergregionalmanage-mentoftheGewerkschaftHandel,BankenundVersicherungen(Trade,BankingandInsuranceUnion)from1991,andwaslaterthemanagingdirectorofthever.didistrictofStuttgartandtheregion.Hebecameaco-founderoftheWASGinresponsetotheAgenda2010issuedbyGerhardSchröder’sfederalgovernmentandwastheWASG’sstatespokespersonforBaden-WürttemberguntilitsamalgamationwiththePDSin2007.TogetherwithKatjaKipping,hehaschairedthepartyDieLinkesince2012andhasbeenamemberoftheGermanBundestagsince2017.

Dr Albert Scharenberg,bornin1965,isanhistorianandpoliticalscientistwhoisthedirectoroftheHistoricalCentreforDemocraticSocialismoftheRosa-Luxem-burg-Stiftung.Priortothat,hewastheco-di-rectoroftheRLS’sNewYorkofficeandedi-torandassociateoftheJournalforGermanandInternationalPolitics.

Dr Jörn Schütrumpf wasbornin1956andisanhistorianandeditor.From2003to2017,hewasthemanageroftheKarlDietzVerlagBerlinandcurrentlyheadsthe“Fok-usstelleRosaLuxembug”(RosaLuxemburgResearch)intheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung.HispublicationsincludeFreiheiten ohne Freiheit: Die Deutsche Demokratische Repu-blik(2010);asaneditor,Angelica Balabanoff: Lenin – oder: Der Zweck heiligt die Mittel(2013);PaulLevi,Ohne einen Tropfen Lakai-enblut: Schriften, Reden, Briefe(2016–2018,fourvolumessofar);Rosa Luxemburg – or: The Price of Freedom(third,revisedandsup-plementededition,2018).

Dr Andrey K. Sorokinwasbornin1950andisanhistorian.In1991,hefoundedtheRosspenpublishinghouse,orPoliticalEncy-clopediaPublishers.In2008,helaunchedtheprojectGeschichtedesStalinismus(His-toryofStalinism),acollectionofrelevantpublicationsin100volumes.Heisamem-beroftheAcademicCounciloftheRussianFederalArchivesanddirectoroftheRus-sianStateArchiveofSocio-PoliticalHistory(RGASPI).

Andreas Steigmeier,bornin1962,isanhistorian,archivist,andbusinessecono-mist.HefoundedtheDocuteamGmbHinBaden,SwitzerlandtogetherwithTobiasWildiin2003andisitsco-director.Withal-most40employees,Docuteamprovidesar-chivingservicesandadvisesorganizationsofallkindsonthelifespanoftheirbusinessrecords.Priortothat,Andreasworkedforalongtimeasafreelancehistorianandwasalsothefounderandpartnerofanon-fictionpublishinghousepublishingcontentinthefieldofhistory.

Tom Strohschneidertrainedasanhisto-rianandhasworkedasajournalistformanyyears.Amongotherthings,hewastheed-itorinchiefofthedailynewspaperneues deutschland (NewGermany).Hismostrecentpublication(asaneditor)isEduard Bernstein oder: Die Freiheit des Andersden-kenden(EduardBernstein,or:TheFreedomoftheDissenters,2019).

Marga Voigt wasborn in1953andisaSlavistand librarian.Shewas the li-brarydirectorattheZentralesHausderDeutschen-SowjetischenFreundschaftinBerlin(CentralHouseofGerman-SovietFriendship)until1990.Since2001,shehas

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workedonafreelancebasisoneditorial,proofreading,andherownpoliticaledu-cationprojectswithintheRLS’snetworkoffoundations.SheisamemberoftheFörderkreisArchiveundBibliothekenzurGeschichtederArbeiterbewegung(SocietyforthePromotionofArchivesandLibrariesontheHistoryoftheLabourMovement)andtheFördervereinderClara-Zetkin-Gedenk-stätte(SocietyforthePromotionoftheClaraZetkinMemorial)inBirkenwerder.Sheistheeditorofthethree-volumeeditionofClaraZetkin’sWar Letters(vol.1:2016).

Dr Sahra Wagenknecht,bornin1969,studiedPhilosophyandModernGermanLit-eratureandcompletedherdoctorateasaneconomistandauthor.ShewasamemberoftheEuropeanParliamentfrom2004to2009andhasbeenamemberoftheGermanBun-destagsince2009.From2015to2019,shewasthechairpersonoftheDieLinkeparlia-mentarygroup.From1991to1995andfrom2000to2014,shewasamemberoftheex-ecutiveboardofthePDSparty,orrathertheLinkspartei.PDSandthepartyDieLinke.

Dr Jochen Weichold, bornin1948,stud-iedHistoryandGermanLanguageandLiter-atureandsubsequentlyworkedasapoliticalscientistformanyyears.HewasthedirectoroftheArchivesforDemocraticSocialismattheRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftungfrom1999to2013.Today,heisprimarilyconcernedwiththedevelopmentofgreenpartiesandwithissuesofEuropeanpolicy.

Dr Florian WeiswasborninHamburgin1967andisanhistorianwhowrotehisdoc-toralthesisontheBritishLabourPartydur-

ingtheSecondWorldWar.HehasworkedfortheRosa-Luxemburg-StiftunginBerlinsince1999andhasbeenitsmanagingdirec-torsince2008.

Dr Tobias Wildi,bornin1973,isanhis-torian,informationscientist,andarchivist.HefoundedDocuteamGmbHin2003andhasbeenitsco-directorsincethen.Amongother things,Docuteamoperatesandoverseeslong-termarchivesanddevelopsopen-sourcesoftwareforthispurpose,whichisusedinGermany,France,andSwitzerland.In2016,theSwissExecutiveFederalCouncilelectedTobiasWildiasthepresidentoftheEidgenössischeKommis-sionfürKulturgüterschutz(SwissAgencyfortheProtectionofCulturalProperty).Inthiscapacity,heisinvolvedindevelopinganationalrepositoryfordigitalculturalas-sets.HeisamemberoftheExpertGrouponArchivalDescriptionoftheInternationalCouncilonArchives.

Dr Evelin Wittich,bornin1950,wasamemberoftheGeschäftsführenderAuss-chussderRosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung(Ex-ecutiveCommittee;until1999knownasGesellschaftsanalyseundpolitischeBildunge.V.,orSocietalAnalysisandPoliticalEduca-tion)from1990to2003,itssolemanagingdirectorfrom2003to2008,anddirectoroftheAcademyforPoliticalEducation,whereshealsomanagedthe“FokusstelleRosaLuxemburg”(RosaLuxemburgResearch).Priortothat,sheworkedasastructuralen-gineerandproblemsanalystattheGDR’sBauakademie(schoolofarchitecture)andvice-managerofPodiumProgressiv,thePDS’seducationalinstitution.

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IMPRINT

PublishedbytheRosa-Luxemburg-StiftungFirstedition2019LiableinaccordancewithGermanpresslaws:AlrunKaune-NüßleinundUlrikeHempelStraßederPariserKommune8A·10243Berlin·www.rosalux.deISBN978-3-948250-08-9·Copydeadline:November2020Photos:coverimageistock/blackred;p.14shutterstock/nullplus;p.68shutterstock/goir;p.88istock/scanrail;p.14,p.68,p.88KimNalleweg+TrujilloArchitekten[M]Editor:TEXT-ARBEIT,BerlinLayoutandtypesetting:MediaServiceGmbHDruckundKommunikationTranslation:HunterBolinandLouisePainforGegensatzTranslationCollective,Berlin

“Archives record decisions, actions and memories. Archives are a unique

and irreplaceable heritage passed from one generation to another. Archi-

ves are managed from creation to preserve their value and meaning. They

are authoritative sources of information underpinning accountable and

transparent administrative actions. They play an essential role in the deve-

lopment of societies by safeguarding and contributing to individual and

community memory. Open access to archives enriches our knowledge of

human society, promotes democracy, protects citizens’ rights and enhan-

ces the quality of life.”

Excerpt from UNESCO’s

Universal Declaration on Archives

10 NOVEMBER 2011