Letter Requesting Membership to the Edelweiss Pirates

At the Hitler Youth we have to practice boxing. There is little socialising apart from when we listen to German folk songs that are about how great Hitler and the Nazi Party are. These songs are very tedious. I would prefer to listen to some Jazz but the S.A man confiscated my radio and said we cannot listen to music by inferior races. I get awfully fed up when the S.A people tell me what I can and can’t do. I feel like they are watching us all the time. I would like more freedom and to be able to express some of my own views rather than going along with the Nazi way of life. I hope this is what it will be like being a member of the Edelweiss Pirates.

Since the Nazi Party has come into power all the things that we learn in school has also changed. All of our textbooks have been replaced and German children (like me) are no longer allowed to associate ourselves with Jews as we are told they are an inferior race. Jews in my class have to sit at separate desks and their work seems to always be shown as a bad example to the class. The questions in my Geography book all seem to involve invading other countries, but I suppose it’s Hitler’s idea of a fun education.

In school we are made to believe the Nazi set of views and if we disagree we get detention. We have no freedom in our views. The teachers say it is a new way of teaching they were taught on summer camps. They say it is better because when pupils have their own views it causes trouble.

After being a member of the Hitler Youth for a brief time I now know I no longer want to be part of such an organisation, and therefore would like to join your gang. Even though I enjoy some of the activities in the Hitler Youth, I get fed up with the relentless drills and strenuous cross-countries.

I hope you will understand why I would like to join your gang and I look forward to meeting with you soon.

Your friend,

Klaus Metzelder