Walking down Unter den Linden in the East Berlin, tourists always gather around the university, or the massive facades of opera, but few of them would take notice of Ampelmännchen (little traffic light man, also known as Ampelmann) figure on the traffic lights if without acknowledgement in advance. But when they continue to walk towards east, their attention would be soon drawn to a bold souvenir shop at the junction of Unter den Linden and Friedrichstraße, in which products are all about the perky red-and-green men. Different from other neighborhood architectural projects such as the Hotel Adlon and the Berlin Cathedral that are preserved and restored in the principles of repairing a damaged original in its essential shape, the Ampelmann shop…show more content… Designed by graphic designer Hans-Jürgen Ellenberger, Ampelmenn’s female colleague, Ampelfrau, was created in 1995 to stand for a memorable good aspect of the GDR to symbolize the aspects of gender equality lost with the collapse of the GDR. The characterized images of Ampelmenn and Ampelfrau stand against the “genderless” and “faceless” of western traffic lights, which represent ‘genderless’ capitalism and unequal gender roles in the west. In the GDR, women’s employment was 78.1%. Single motherhood was also widely accepted and motherhood in general was supported by child care services. Just as notions of safety, simplicity, and innocence embodied in Ampelmann, Ampelfrau fits into an image of both female liberation and equality in the career field supported by GDR policies through a legitimate role of both mother and worker to present GDR as an equal, open, and progressive…show more content… First, her appearance corresponds more to defend against west ideology than genuine fondness on itself. When being question why there was no female Ampelmann, Peglau responded “I hadn’t thought of it,” quickly pointing out, however, “this is not a rejection of women – I love women.” The function of Ampelfrau’s appearance is more propagandistic than practical. Second, Ampelfrau respresents even more discriminating differences between genders. Emphasizing gender equality itself implies distinctive gender roles. The gap between a figure of equality and gender distinction is hard to reconcile. However, the controversy of Ampelfrau and Ampelmenn succeeded in attracting great attention from both media and public to the protest of saving Ampelmann so that politicians and authorities who initially paid no attention to the protesting signals could no longer avoid entering into objective discussions. Also, despite so many problems existing in the introduction of Ampelfrau, the positive aspects still dominate initial intention behind Ampelfrau. Ampelmann and Ampelfrau’s gender roles suggest GDR ideals of greater gender equality and equality of opportunity for women, which could still fit and benefit modern society. In this understanding , the Ampelmenn-centered memory is a not complete rejection of current system after reunification. Saving Ampelmenn represents former GDR citizens’ struggle in finding their
