How+did+Hitler+affect+the+children+of+Germany?

Many forget that Hitler not only affected the children who were the victims of concentration camps and persecution but also drastically changed the youth of Germany. He tried to shape the future leaders of Germany by creating the Hitler Youth (and the League of German Girls as an extension). Up until ­­­­1936, the organizations were optional, but then they became mandatory to all eligible children when the First Hitler Youth Law was passed (Hansen and Crawford). His plan was to shape the country into his idea of a perfect German by instilling certain lessons, ideas, and ways of thinking into the youth. Hitler knew he couldn't convince all the adults in the country with propaganda and speeches. Children, though, have a clean slate and were easy for him to manipulate and influence to follow his ideology ("Hitler Youth: Usefulness...). The children “built character” in the Hitler Youth to prepare them for their futures in helping the community, or the Nazi //Volksgemeinschaft //. Adolf Hitler said, "The weak must be chiseled  away. I want young men and women who can suffer pain. A young German must be as swift as a greyhound, as tough as leather, and as hard as Krupp's heel" (Sutton). Hitler emphasized the superiority  of the German nation and the Aryan race, and the programs ingrained these ideas into the children ("Hitler Youth." // Historic... //). By molding the youth into what he wanted, Hitler hoped to do the same thing to Germany in the future.

Sadly, when the number of adult soldiers started to decrease, Hitler placed some of the older Hitler Youth boys in the army, often on the front  line. He used the strong German nationalism to convince the boys that they were fighting for a bigger and better Germany ("Hitler Youth." // Wikipedia // ).  The years in the Hitler Youth program only made the boys more anxious to join in on the "adventure" of war. No matter which way you turn, Hitler was shaping Germany through it's children. He was either killing the non-Aryan kids or manipulating the Aryan children through the Hitler Youth and war.

By Mary Grace Frazier

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