Opening lecture with Dr. Enrico Heitzer "Why do we need a critical remembrance of National Socialism today?"

Dr. Enrico Heitzer from the Brandenburg Memorials Foundation devoted his lecture to the question of why a critical approach to this period is still necessary in the sense of conscious "self-disturbance" (Volkhard Knigge).

The audience of around 20 listened intently to his presentation, which included the topic of anti-fascism in the GDR. Dr. Heitzer reported on his work at the Sachsenhausen Memorial, where they have unfortunately noticed an increasing number of right-wing incidents. In his presentation, he pointed out that the GDR's historical reappraisal dealt extensively with National Socialism. However, the GDR state distanced itself from the Nazi past as if there had never been any Nazi-minded people on its territory. The crimes of the Stalin era were also not discussed officially. Dr. Heitzer reported from his academic work that there was less concrete regional research on how National Socialism functioned in everyday life in East Germany. This point sparked a lively discussion in the ensuing debate.

The lecture series is one of 35 projects funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) during the Year of Science Freedom. As part of the Year of Science 2024, the town of Spremberg and the state's presence office are inviting you to further events on the topic of "Freedom" https://www.praesenzstelle-spremberg.de/wissenschaftsjahr. The next event will take place on June 6 on the topic of the 1953 uprising. All interested parties are welcome. The event is free of charge.