Concerts

Partying like the Irish: German-American Weekend

The Germans are coming! The Germans are coming! Oh wait, they’ve already been here in Philadelphia for 325 years. Not to worry. Seems to be working out well so far. It’s that time of year again – the German Society will be hosting a full slate of activities surrounding German-American Weekend October 1-6, 2008.

Germans have a long and storied history in Philadelphia, with more than 8 million immigrants arriving in America since the first settlers from Krefeld, Germany set foot on these shores and established their homestead in nearby Germantown. At one point in the mid 18th century, nearly half of Philadelphia was German, which caused Benjamin Franklin some consternation. Calm down, Ben. This is a good thing. At the last nationwide census, a full 20% of Americans claimed German ancestry.

In 1983, President Reagan signed a proclamation declaring October 6 as German-American Day. The question arises, other than a yearly reception at City Hall held by the Mayor of Philadelphia, why have other festivities celebrating October 6 nearly slipped into oblivion?

What’s the problem? Irish-Americans aren’t the only ones who know how to throw a party. Germans invented freakin’ Oktoberfest. They should be able to generate a bit more interest about their culture and contributions to the country on their special day.

Somebody call Dirk Nowitski. Maybe he can explain this outrage.

Well, this time around the German Society is seeing to it that there are enough events and attractions to appeal to young and old, German and non-German alike, who want to savor the culture and history. Here are a few morsels: a historic play, a four-part PBS documentary, a fundraising walk-a-thon, two performances by a 100 piece orchestra from the Palatine region of Germany, plus an Oktoberfest street festival complete with bratwurst, sauerkraut, rolls, pretzels, and plenty of beer, wine, and soda.

Take that, boring and forgotten holiday!

For the full schedule of weekend activities and to learn about all things German-American, click here. The German Society of Pennsylvania is located at 611 Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia, PA.

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