Original Use of The Term
The term was first used in reference to the Berlin Wall, which separated East Berlin from West Berlin. In 1961 the government of East Germany named the erected wall as the "Anti-fascist protection wall", a part of the inner German border; many Berliners, however, called it "Schandmauer" ("Wall of Shame"). Outside Germany it first appeared as "Wall of Shame" in a cover story published by Time Magazine in 1962, and President of the United States John F. Kennedy used the term in his Annual Message to the US Congress on the State of the Union, January 14, 1963.
The Berlin Wall was referred to as the "Wall of Shame" in many more recent notable works, such as:
- Mário Soares, former Prime minister and later President of Portugal (1986-1996), in his academic article "The Democratic Invention"
- The "Our Europe" Speech by Jacques Chirac, President of France, to the Bundestag, 27 June 2000
- 2002 Speech by Romano Prodi, Prime Minister of Italy and former President of the European Commission
Read more about this topic: Wall Of Shame
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