America House (Berlin)

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Front view of the America House

The Amerika-Haus at Hardenbergstrasse 22-24 in the Berlin district of Charlottenburg was a US culture and information center about the country and its people, especially about scholarships . It was built in 1957 according to plans by the architect Bruno Grimmek and handed over to the city of Berlin in 2006.

The building should not be confused with the earlier Amerikahaus of the same name, which can only be distinguished in its spelling, in the Westend district , which was completed in 1930.

history

In order to shape the image of the USA abroad, the United States Information Agency was founded in 1953 , and its Berlin branch moved into the new Amerika-Haus in Hardenbergstrasse in 1957. Over the years you could visit a library and cultural events there, as well as find out about routes to the USA.

From 1968 the initially friendly atmosphere that surrounded the house changed and turned into the opposite with numerous militant demonstrations against the Vietnam War . On the night of May 5, 1970, in response to the Kent State massacre, a gasoline bomb attack took place . Since then, police, control and fence systems have been part of the surroundings of the colorful mosaic facade . This intensified with the beginning of the Iraq war in 2003 until the complete collapse of the vitality of this cultural institution, which seemed to be lying dead behind barricades. In 2006 the Americans handed the building over to the city of Berlin.

From January 31 to May 31, 2008 the Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb) showed an exhibition on the student movement entitled '68 - Focus Berlin in the Amerika-Haus .

The Amerika-Haus Berlin Initiative Committee has existed since April 2006 and is coordinated and legally represented by the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy.Among others, the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies at Johns Hopkins University and the Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations are involved . The aim is to preserve the Amerika-Haus and revitalize it as a cultural meeting place in the form of an event and information center that is open to the public and organized in a civil society. As part of this initiative, the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy and the Federal Agency for Civic Education are organizing the series of events How Does America Choose? From September 29 to November 24, 2008 . Insights and perspectives in the America House.

The Amerika-Haus was allocated to the real estate special property of the State of Berlin (SILB) on January 1, 2013 and leased to the non-profit C / O Berlin Foundation for a period of eleven years with options for extension. Furthermore, the building is used by the Berlin state headquarters for political education . In 2017, the building was removed from the SILB and assigned as a strategically important building to the special fund for services of general interest (SODA), so that it will remain the property of the State of Berlin in the long term.

literature

Web links

Commons : Amerika Haus (Berlin)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Arson . In: Der Spiegel . No.  20 , 1970, pp. 120 ( online ). Quote: "Seven hours later, comrades from West Berlin showed solidarity with their American fellow students."
  2. ↑ Strategically important properties are included in the special fund for services of general interest . Senate Department for Finance , Press Release No. 17-019, August 3, 2017, accessed on April 20, 2019.

Coordinates: 52 ° 30 ′ 24 ″  N , 13 ° 19 ′ 50 ″  E