Hitler Youth “A Leisure Activity” Hitler-Jugend, or HJ, was the plague Hitler-Youth that struck Europe in the early 1900s. Originally founded in 1926, it continued to grow stronger throughout World War II. By 1935, 60% of Germany’s “qualified” youth belonged to HJ. Then in 1939 that number became 90%. 90% of an entire nation’s youth belonging to a group that supported a genocidal leader. The young kids in HJ could not have known what they were doing. The kids would go on camping trips, participate in parades, and taught them how to be successful in the military. HJ was considered a fun leisure activity even though looking back on what it really was; it should be considered anything but a leisure activity. Children were lured into a life of Nazism before they could see clearly into what was to become of their futures. Hitler betrayed the innocent children of Germany by bringing them into such a wretched way of thinking. Hitler-Youth brought many kids into a horrific world. They were lied to, manipulated, and given what they thought was a sanctuary. The children of Hitler-Youth though that Nazism was a beautiful thing. At a young age children were fed propaganda and feelings of nationalistic pride. At such a young age these kids could not tell that what was going on around them was wrong. The children were forced to believe that Hitler was their savior. They were told that he would fix their problems. That he would bring Germany into a heaven on Earth. They were very terribly lied to. Every year on Hitler’s birthday, a gigantic party would be thrown. To wish him a happy birthday the new children of HJ would come together and recite the pledge one by one. The children would say “In the presence of this Blood Banner, which represents our Fuhrer, I swear to devote all my energies and my strength to the Savior of our country, Adolf Hitler. I am willing to give up my life for him, so help me, God.” Children as young as ten would recite this in front of a massive crowd. In that crowd Hitler would be sitting watching as his influence over Germany continued to increase. Children would be swearing their lives over to Germany and not even know what they were saying. Hitler-Youth is considered by some to be comparable to Boy Scouts. The boys involved were taken camping, played games, and did other things that children thought of as very enjoyable. Kids all over Germany wanted to be a part of this massive tidal wave that was taking over Europe. In just thirteen years of existence, HJ had managed to have 90% of the child population in its hands. How did such a thing happen? First off, Hitler forcedly combined every