Human beings usually do things because they believe they are confident that what they are doing is contributing to the greater good. If someone is raised to believe a certain race or religion is evil, they will probably spend the rest of their lives believing it is true, because they have no other proof to convince them otherwise. In order to create a perfect race, Hitler established youth camps for children to join and prepare to become German soldiers. In the camps, children were taught that their country was superior, and the concept of Nazism was glorified. When the children grew up, they still believed in what they were taught in the camps, because it was implanted in their heads for many years.
The second photo in the Hitler Youth display is of children in the Hitler Youth camps marching in the formation of a Swastika at a rally honoring Germany’s Unknown Soldier. The rally was dedicated to all of the unidentified soldiers, marines, sailors, and airmen who lost their lives defending Germany. A very interesting aspect of this photo is the image of the Swastika, which seems to be everywhere in the camps, grinding Nazi ideology into the young childrens’ minds. Since children’s minds are so easily manipulated, the camps make them believe what Hitler was doing was justified, and they didn’t find it evil at all.
In the same display, the third photo is equally as interesting. The photo is of children in a Hitler Youth Camp showing pride for their nation by gesturing the Nazi salute. In the background, there are many large swastikas lining the walls. There are many children in the meeting, all of them contributing to the Nationalistic views they had of their country, which would stay with them through adulthood.
In the propaganda display, there is a photo of a children’s book that was popular in Germany around the 1930’s. It was called You Can't Trust a Fox in the Heath and a Jew on his Oath: A Picture Book for Young and Old. The book was for young children, and it taught them that Jewish people were not to be trusted. The cover of the book had a picture of a Jew taking an oath, and a fox in the heath. The book commended anti-Semitism, and influenced the minds of the children reading it, maybe even without their knowing it. While they thought they were reading a story about a fox and a Jew, it was really setting them up for supporting Nazism when they grew up.
As a result of pro-Nazi teachings throughout their childhood, the children learned that they were doing the right thing by discriminating people who didn’t fit the criteria of a “perfect human.” Having no other outside influence, they never believed they were doing evil when they grew up, and they truly thought their decisions were justified.
"Hitler Youth." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 10 June 2013. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.
"Indoctrinating Youth." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 10 June 2013. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.
<http://www.ushmm.org/propaganda/archive/hitler-youth-marching/>
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