Big Ideas How a picnic started the fall of the Iron Curtain
Aug 19, 2025
Matthew Longo, author and Assistant Professor of Political Science at Leiden University, dives into a historic picnic that sparked the fall of the Iron Curtain. He recounts the courageous moment in 1989 when 700 East Germans fled to freedom, capturing the youthful spirit of activism against oppressive regimes. The discussion highlights the complexities of political change in Eastern Europe and the subsequent disillusionment with democracy. Longo also examines how historical narratives are manipulated by political groups today, showing the evolving nature of history.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Wild Idea Sparks A Protest Picnic
- Activists in eastern Hungary planned a daring picnic on the Iron Curtain to dramatize its absurdity.
- Ferenc proposed the party and Maria volunteered to help, and they built the event slowly despite ridicule.
Reformer Leadership Enabled Change
- Miklós Németh was a reformist prime minister who sought economic sovereignty to fix Hungary.
- He met Gorbachev and secured tacit consent to make border changes that set the opening in motion.
Electric Fence Cut As A Signal
- Nemeth began symbolically dismantling the border by turning off electric fencing to save money and signal change.
- The frayed electric fence caused false alarms and low guard morale, making its removal practical as well as political.
