Andreas Maislinger
An Austrian activist who turned national guilt into global action, creating a unique civil service for Holocaust remembrance and reconciliation.
Born 1955 (age 71)·Austrian historian·Birthday: February 26·Baby Boomers
Biography
Andreas Maislinger, born in the shadow of Austria's complex wartime past, dedicated his life to forging tools for historical confrontation and peace. From his hometown of St. Georgen, he looked at the nation's often-ambivalent relationship with its Nazi history and decided to build bridges instead of walls. His most enduring creation is the Austrian Service Abroad, a program that allows young Austrians to fulfill their national service obligation by working at Holocaust memorials, human rights organizations, and peace institutes around the world. This initiative, inspired by the German Action Reconciliation Service for Peace, fundamentally reframed civic duty as an act of atonement and education. Maislinger's work extends to founding the Braunau Contemporary History Days—held in Adolf Hitler's birthplace—and establishing the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Award, forcing his country to consistently engage with the darkest chapters of its past in a productive, forward-looking manner.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Andreas was born in 1955, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Andreas Was Born
The biggest hits of 1955
#1 Movie
Lady and the Tramp
Best Picture
Marty
#1 TV Show
The $64,000 Question
Andreas's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1955Born
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1960Started school
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1968Became a teenager
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1971Could drive
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1973Could vote
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1976Turned 21
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1985Turned 30
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1995Turned 40
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
2005Turned 50
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2015Turned 60
Paris climate agreement; same-sex marriage legalized in the US
Gas: $2.43/galHome: $171,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Uptown Funk" — Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsBest Picture: Spotlight
2025Turned 70
AI agents go mainstream
Gas: $3.10/galHome: $385,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"APT." — Rose & Bruno Mars
2026Age 71 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Founded the Austrian Service Abroad, allowing Austrians to do alternative service at Holocaust memorial sites globally.
- Created the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Award to honor those who fight against antisemitism and genocide denial.
- Initiated the Braunau Contemporary History Days, an annual conference in Hitler's birthplace addressing themes of dictatorship and responsibility.
- Successfully lobbied for the official recognition of the Gedenkdienst (Memorial Service) as an alternative to Austria's compulsory military service.
Did You Know?
He was a visiting professor at the University of New Orleans in the United States.
Maislinger's idea for the service abroad was initially rejected by Austrian authorities for years before being accepted.
He has been a vocal critic of the Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ) and its historical associations.
His work has been recognized with honors from countries including Poland and Germany.
“Confronting history is not a burden, but a necessary responsibility.”
