Tearing Down Walls

Tearing Down Walls

By SUNSHINE LIVE & Sylvia CunninghamSociety & CultureNewsPolitics
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Tearing Down Walls episodes

  • Pandemic 2.0: Are we on the road to recovery?

    One thing is for certain: The pandemic hasn’t gone away. But with vaccines in both countries readily available, the odds are different. How are the U.S. and Germany tackling the next phase of the pandemic when it comes to travel, university life, and cultural offerings? Are we closer to getting our old freedoms back, or is there still no end in sight?



    On the third episode of Tearing Down Walls, host Sylvia Cunningham talks with Erik Kirschbaum, a Berlin-based American journalist and executive director of the German-American exchange program RIAS; Savannah Papuga, a dental hygiene student at the University of New Haven; Jonathan Dreusch, a German student from fzs, an umbrella organization of student groups in Germany; Detlef Diederichsen, who heads the department of music and performing arts at Berlin's Haus der Kulturen der Welt; and Jessica Gelt, an arts and culture reporter for the LA Times.

    Also check out our other SUNSHINE LIVE podcasts: Behind the scenes interviews from festivals and clubs with techno DJ Felix Kröcher, honest looks at drug use in the nightlife, including safer use tips, travel recommendations from DJs and many more. Find them at sunshine-live.de/podcasts, in the SUNSHINE LIVE app or right here on this podcast platform.

    32 min
  • How far have the U.S. and Germany come on LGBTQ+ rights?

    Throughout Pride events in the U.S. and Germany across June and July, there were not only celebratory parades but also protests following an uptick in anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and discrimination. On the second episode of Tearing Down Walls, host Sylvia Cunningham explores LGBTQ+ rights and movements on both sides of the Atlantic with guests who say there's still a long way to go on the road to equality and acceptance.



    We hear reporting by producer Monika Müller-Kroll from a local Berlin Pride parade; insight from Samuel Clowes Huneke, a historian of modern Germany and author of the forthcoming book, “States of Liberation: Gay Men between Dictatorship and Democracy in Cold War Germany"; and a transatlantic discussion between Felicia Rolletschke, a Berlin-based trans activist, and Khaaliq Crowder, an alum from from the University of New Haven, home to our partner station WNHU.

    Also check out our other SUNSHINE LIVE podcasts: Behind the scenes interviews from festivals and clubs with techno DJ Felix Kröcher, honest looks at drug use in the nightlife, including safer use tips, travel recommendations from DJs and many more. Find them at sunshine-live.de/podcasts, in the SUNSHINE LIVE app or right here on this podcast platform.

    28 min
  • Welcome to Tearing Down Walls

    Tearing Down Walls is a new monthly program out of Berlin aiming to connect and find understanding with a new generation across the Atlantic.



    Germany and the United States may be longtime allies, but polls in the last few years have revealed major cracks. A study released in May 2021 found that about a third of Germans believe that democracy in their country is threatened by influence from the U.S. But studies also show that young people in both countries are the most optimistic about the transatlantic relationship.


    On the premiere episode of Tearing Down Walls, host Sylvia Cunningham explores the bond between the two nations with three Fulbright recipients and alums: Alyssa Culp, an American Ph.D. candidate in Bavaria; Sophia Dasch, a German masters student who studied at Brown University; and Sascha Daniels, an American masters/Ph.D. student and communications and outreach office for Fulbright Noir, a platform that highlights the experiences of Black Fulbrighters.

    Also check out our other SUNSHINE LIVE podcasts: Behind the scenes interviews from festivals and clubs with techno DJ Felix Kröcher, honest looks at drug use in the nightlife, including safer use tips, travel recommendations from DJs and many more. Find them at sunshine-live.de/podcasts, in the SUNSHINE LIVE app or right here on this podcast platform.

    25 min

About Tearing Down Walls

From the publisher's feed

Tearing Down Walls connects a new generation across the Atlantic. Every month, Berlin-based host Sylvia Cunningham explores the issues impacting our lives in Germany and the United States. DJs,…