The Berlin Wall, 1961
- People had been fleeing to the west (democratic) through Berlin for many years (brain drain), 3 million left
- anyone with education went west to make more money
- Krushchev wants Kennedy to pull out of Berlin and make it a free city
- Kennedy increases US strength
- Krushchev responds by building a wall around West Berlin
- Both leaders were accused of being soft in Berlin and fixed this by ordering more tests of Nuclear weapons (showing their strength and scaring the competition)
"Ich bin ein Berliner"
- speech made by JFK
- showed the Soviets he wasn't going to back down
- (I am a Berliner)
Summary
For many years, people had been fleeing to the west to avoid communism (brain drain). In order to stop this, a wall was put up around West Berlin, dividing the city. President Kennedy made a speech to show the Soviets that he wasn't going to back down, "ich bin ein Berliner."