How did the Nazis affect the lives of young people of Germany in 1933?

Hitler realized that school changes weren’t enough. He had to make it more fun for the children so they would be interested in it. Hitler created the ‘Hitler Youth’. The Hitler Youth was a club for boys and boys only. They were similar to scouts although they were very violent in what they did. They went on camps that used a lot of team work and they also marched from place to place. Each boy got a uniform and could earn badges. In 1932 100,000 boys were in the Hitler Youth. By 1939 over 8 million had joined. This was now the biggest club in the world and continued to grow. There were only approximately 9 million people in Germany at the time and 8 million of them were enrolled into the Hitler Youth giving them a future with the army. Children respected Hitler and loved him. He was seen as a saint that re-built Germany for the better.

Like the Hitler Youth there was a club for girls. Although this was called ‘The League of German Maidens’. This was for girls only. They had a uniform that looked like a peasant’s general dress. This was to make the women to feel the weaker sex. Girls were not allowed to wear make-up and were to only have their hair in plaits. Each child was to look alike. They were not taught to shoot and fight, but to cook and clean as this was seen as the future for girls all over Germany.  No woman was to work although many objected. They were told to use this motto: ‘children, church and kitchen’. Women were there to only reproduce, clean and to go to church. Although churches were also Nazi controlled.

Many people objected to Hitler’s ideas. Many teens formed groups called the ‘swing’ movement, Idelweiss pirates and the white rose group. They believed in freedom. They just wanted to have fun. They smoked and drank alcohol and then listened to American Jazz music. They would hang around the streets and graffiti the walls. Hitler hated these people who planned to ruin Hitler. He sentenced them to death. Laws were made so that teenagers could not smoke, drink or stay out late. He made a curfew for all teenagers and expected these rules to be followed out.

So, Hitler and the Nazis affected the lives of many people and children through the media, with school books etc. Also with the Hitler Youth and camps. He made sure that German children were to learn the Hitler way and battle for Germany in years to come.