Memorial and Education Centre Andreasstraße, Erfurt

The Memorial and Education Centre Andreasstraße serves as a poignant reminder of the oppressive surveillance and imprisonment practices that took place in the former East Germany, particularly in Erfurt. Situated in the very building that once housed the Stasi district headquarters and detention center, the site is now dedicated to documenting and commemorating the resistance and oppression during the GDR era.

Visitors to the Centre are invited to delve into the dark past of the building, which was a place of interrogation and incarceration for political prisoners from 1949 until the peaceful revolution in 1989. The transformation of this site into a memorial ensures that the stories and the struggles of those who were imprisoned are not forgotten.

The exhibition at the Memorial and Education Centre Andreasstraße provides a comprehensive look into the mechanisms of state surveillance and control used by the Stasi. Through a series of personal accounts, documents, and original artefacts, the Centre educates its visitors about the impact of the GDR's state security on the lives of individuals and the society as a whole.

Apart from the permanent exhibition, the Centre also hosts educational programs, temporary exhibitions, and events that encourage reflection on the issues of dictatorship and democracy, making it not only a site of remembrance but also a place of active learning and dialogue.