Rudi Dutschke
| Rudi Dutschke | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
Alfred Willi Rudi Dutschke March 7, 1940 Schönefeld, Brandenburg |
| Died | December 24, 1979 (aged 39) Århus, Denmark |
| Cause of death | drowned because of epileptic seizure while in the bathtub |
| Residence | Berlin, Germany |
| Nationality | German |
| Alma mater | Freie Universität Berlin |
| Known for | Spokesperson of the German student movement |
| Home town | Luckenwalde, East Germany |
| Spouse(s) | Gretchen Klotz (1966–79) |
| Children | 3 |
Alfred Willi Rudi Dutschke (March 7, 1940 – December 24, 1979) was the most prominent spokesperson of the German student movement of the 1960s. He advocated a "long march through the institutions of power" to create radical change from within government and society by becoming an integral part of the machinery. This was an idea he took up from his interpretation of Antonio Gramsci and the Frankfurt school of Critical Theory; accordingly, the quote is often wrongfully attributed to Gramsci. In the 1970s he followed through on this idea by joining the nascent Green movement.
He survived an assassination attempt by Josef Bachmann in 1968, but died 12 years later from health problems caused by his injuries. Radical students blamed an anti-student campaign in the papers of the Axel Springer publishing empire for the assassination attempt. This led to attempts to blockade the distribution of Springer newspapers all over Germany, which in turn led to major street battles in many German cities.
Dutschke was born in Schönefeld (present-day Nuthe-Urstromtal) near Luckenwalde, Brandenburg, the son of a postal clerk. Raised in East Germany (GDR), he attended school and graduated from the Gymnasium there. Interested in the ideas of religious socialism, he was engaged in the youth organisation of the East German Evangelical Church. In 1956 he joined the socialist Free German Youth aiming at a sporting career as a decathlete.
In the same year, however, he witnessed the Hungarian Uprising and began to advocate the ideals of a democratic socialism beyond the official line of the Socialist Unity Party. He obtained his Abitur degree in 1958 and completed an apprenticeship as an industrial clerk. As he refused to join the East Germany National People's Army and convinced many of his fellow students to refuse as well, he was prevented from attending university in the GDR. In August 1961, Dutschke finally fled to the Marienfelde transit camp in West Berlin, just one day before the Berlin Wall was built.
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