If I were to take you to Phyllis Schlafly’s office today, I could show you all kinds of treasures. You would see Ronald Reagan’s tie, a letter from Margaret Thatcher, and the Republican Party Platform signed by Donald Trump. With all that glitz and glamor, it might be very easy to miss a small chunk of concrete and a snippet of barbed wire hanging beside Phyllis’s desk in an unassuming wooden frame. You would never know that such a small ornament is actually a symbol of one of the greatest stories of good overcoming evil that mankind has ever known. It was once a part of the infamous Berlin Wall.
Thirty-one years ago today, the Berlin Wall fell in Germany, testifying to the power of the freedom to overcome tyranny. In the aftermath of World War II, the entire nation of Germany was cut in two. The western half was controlled by the United States, France, and Great Britain. The eastern half was controlled by the communist Soviets. Faced with the tyranny of Soviet rule, millions fled from East Germany to West. By the time the Berlin Wall went up in 1961, 20% of the entire population of East Germany had left.
Imagine a wall like that being built in your city. Suddenly, those living just a few blocks away were in an entirely different country. Family members that were once close by might as well be on a different planet. That was what communists did to keep their power. They claimed that they were trying to protect East Germany from the West, but no one was fooled. All you had to do was look which direction the guns were pointing to see that the Wall was all about oppressing those under communist rule.
Thirty-one years later today, a piece of that oppression hangs in Phyllis Schlafly’s office. She kept it there as a constant reminder that freedom is something worth fighting for. When patriots are willing to take a stand, good can overcome evil. Thankfully, citizens of the United States of America do not live under communism today, but the fight for freedom rages on. America is counting on you to do your part.
