Story 7

Stephen Peter is a man who has done many different things throughout his life and whether it is teaching various political based classes or the trails of his life, it has shaped his views and has helped mold him into a man who has seen not only local but international acclaim for his work.

Stephen immigrated to the US at the age of 30, a task he felt he would not have been ready for earlier in his life. He still has difficulty classifying himself as American or as his native German. He is as he calls himself a “strange hybrid”.

As one might guess Peter’s family has most of its history in Germany. This has become a subject that he frequently brings up as the long German history has large amounts of untold stories that can reflect almost all kinds of different views and ideology. Stories of the Nazi rise and persecutions of those who disagreed has shaped his political views in way do to his knowledge that connects to him more than the average American due to his family’s roots.

One of the major members of Peter’s family that shaped him was his grandfather. Wilhelm Danz, Peter’s grandfather, was a civil servant caught in the middle the Nazi rise in 1933, a time when not joining the Nazi party would have been seen as treason and a near certain harsh punishment would wait in the future. Still as a World War I survivor who had been held prisoner in near unlivable conditions, Danz continued his current life style after a difficult decision to not embrace the Nazi party. A demotion was thrown on him and letters suggest that he may have been eventually been in line for an execution. Peter believes that if the war had dragged on longer that he would have been.

Peter is a member of the Jewish faith and even has worked as a greeter for his synagogue. Strangely enough he actually lived across from the minorly famous Saarbruecken city synagogue, the first synagogue erected after World War II. The Building actually features some the structure design from Nazi building styles due to the lack of French or Italian design styles available at the time.

Peter Still has a very large connection to Europe. He accounts that he may have crossed the Atlantic 60 times in 23 years from the US. France is one area he always makes sure he visits and while many people see Paris as the end all area for French culture he has not visited the city since moving to the US. Instead the city of Bouzonville has become his “must stop” area for France. Bouzzonville has its own long history including battles form the Franco-Prussian war. The city offers a large view of France with its people, its politics and its history and it is a city that Peter considers one of his homes.

Peter’s hometown in Germany however is a different case from Bouzonville. The city of Billngen was a major bombing area for the US in World War II that also saw large amounts of ground fighting. The city itself has a bizarre element with new buildings built after the war standing next to old prewar structures. While growing up in the town there was almost a silent vow to not discuss what happened in the town during World War II to the point that Peter felt that he had to come to the US to truly learn about his former home.

Peter himself is a major member of the Democratic Socialist party and the author the book “Bridging The Gap”. The book largely is focused on discussing the things that has influenced his views and how he connects his personal beliefs to the Europe’s past to see how it can affect the future. The book has recived praise from some interesting sources including Saul Escobar Toledo, an International Secretary of the Mexican PRD, and Bill Blaike who is the Deputy Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons in Ottawa. Koba Krause who is a holds a chair in the SPD in Luxembourg said, “To look beyond Europe and to begin recognizing the diversity of opinions in the U.S. barely noticeable in Europe, and to enable us to learn from each other, and develop collaboration- these are the major concerns of Stephan Peter’s international work”.

Peter has taken this knowledge and teaches international politics at Anoka Ramsey and in other places. He has not just studied from the views of the US but as the views of Europe that many people from the US may not even be aware of. This has allowed him to take a unique view and has allowed him to share his knowledge with any who he teaches.