German-American Conference in Northfield, Minnesota
"Holocaust Education & The Legacy of 1848, Transplanted Ideas and Values in America's Past and Present," a conference in Northfield, Minnesota from March 30 to April 2, attracted nearly 250 participants from the U.S., Germany, and Denmark. It was organized by historians Dr. Joachim (Yogi) Reppmann and Dr. Don Heinrich Tolzmann.
The conference began on Thursday with the opening of an impressive traveling exhibit, “Luther's Childhood in Mansfeld”, and was followed on Friday with sessions devoted to German-Jewish relations. Dr. Peter Lubrecht spoke during the luncheon about his experiences growing up as a German-American in New York City. Consul General Herbert Quelle delivered a top-notch keynote address that evening on German-American relations. The evening concluded with the premiere of a documentary A Flensburg Perspective: Erna de Vries and the Holocaust Boxcar that Dr. Reppmann arranged to have transported to the “Fagen Fighters World War II Museum” in Granite Falls, Minnesota.
Saturday was devoted to the German-American Forty-Eighters and their legacy and significance for today. At the Saturday dinner Carol Kahn Strauss and Diane Fagen, President of the museum, received the Carl Schurz Prize. In addition, the German-American Friendship Award of the Federal Republic was presented, on behalf of Ambassador Peter Wittig in Washington, to Yogi Reppmann for his contributions to German-American relations.
The keynote address on Saturday, "Thoughts on Being German," was given by Eric Braeden, who is known for his role in the film Titanic. His recent memoir is titled I'll Be Damned: How My Young and Restless Life Led Me to America's #1 Daytime Drama.
Recommended Reading:
Joachim Reppmann, Eric Braeden, From Bredenbek to Hollywood: The Legacy of 1848, Through Today, Northfield, MN und Flensburg, SH, 2016. (Printing on Demand: www.LuLu.com)
Friedhelm Caspari and Joachim Reppmann, The Holocaust Boxcar – A Powerful Admonition Against Anti-Semitism, Northfield, MN, 2016. (Printing on Demand: www.LuLu.com)
Joachim (Yogi) Reppmann, Crossing the Ocean: German-American Friendships, Northfield, MN, 2017. (Printing on Demand: www.LuLu.com)