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Edelweisspiraten
bell (bell@RZ.UNI-DUESSELDORF.DE)
Fri, 11 Nov 1994 15:19:15 GMT
Dear friends,
Fifty years ago today, here in Cologne six boys at the age of 15/16 were
hung to death by the Gestapo.
Their crime was that they didn't want to wear a uniform. They didn't join
the HJ, as all boys had to, but they formed their own gang, going out to
nature at the weekends to camp, taking their guitars to sing songs that
weren't convenient for the dictators. They called themselves
Edelweisspiraten and in october 1944, most of them were taken to prison
and tortured by the Gestapo.
Last night I was at a memorial service at the place were the gallow stood.
A survivor told us about the time in prison, the tortures, the day when his
friends were murdered and his liberation by American soldiers.
There were also many scouts and scouters in prisons and KZs. Naturally soon
after the Nazis came to power, scouting and other youth-organizations were
forbidden in Germany. Only the HJ was allowed and every boy had to join.
Many scout-groups continued their meetings and work illegaly and when they
were discovered, they had to suffer prison or even death.
Terry Howerton Sakima Group, Inc. SCOUTER Magazine Kansas City |
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