The Labour History Research Unit held a very successful symposium in November, commemorating the 20th anniversary of the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe and the fall of the Berlin Wall. A packed room heard talks from Professor Stefan Berger (University of Manchester) and Dr Jonathan Davis (Anglia Ruskin University). They discussed the incredible consequences that Mikhail Gorbachev's perestroika had for European socialism and global politics.

Stefan Berger spoke about the impact that the end of communism had on the German Left after the Berlin Wall came down. He argued that the Left is still unsettled as the old East German communists have struggled to organise themselves into a coherent force. Jon Davis focused on the relationship between Gorbachev's reforms to Soviet Socialism and Neil Kinnock's reforms of the British Labour Party in the 1980s, arguing that the ideological changes made in the USSR meant that British socialists were more likely to accept Kinnock's own perestroika of the Labour Party. It is hoped that this symposium may now lead to a wider collaborative project.

A lively question and answer session followed, as members of the audience asked questions which covered a range of issues. All in all it was a thought-provoking way to celebrate a truly life changing event.

For more information please contact Jon Davis.

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