Pioneer movement

Last updated
Young Pioneers at a Young Pioneer camp in Kazakh SSR. Young Pioneers in Kazakh SSR.jpg
Young Pioneers at a Young Pioneer camp in Kazakh SSR.

A pioneer movement is an organization for children operated by a communist party. Typically children enter into the organization in elementary school and continue until adolescence. The adolescents then typically join the Young Communist League. Prior to the 1990s there was a wide cooperation between pioneer and similar movements of about 30 countries, coordinated by the international organization, International Committee of Children's and Adolescents' Movements (French : Comité international des mouvements d'enfants et d'adolescents, CIMEA), founded in 1958, with headquarters in Budapest, Hungary.

Contents

Overview

Emblem of the Soviet Pioneer Organization with a silhouette of Vladimir Lenin and the inscription Always prepared! Pioneers pin.svg
Emblem of the Soviet Pioneer Organization with a silhouette of Vladimir Lenin and the inscription Always prepared!

During the Russian Civil War from 1917 to 1921, most of the Russian Scoutmasters and many Scouts fought in the ranks of the White Army against the Red Army. Between 1918 and 1920, the All-Russian Congresses of the Russian Union of the Communist Youth (Komsomol) decided to eradicate the Scout movement and create an organization of the communist type, that would take Soviet children and adolescents under its umbrella. This organization would resemble the Scout movement in its form but properly educate children with Communist teachings. [1]

On behalf of the Soviet Council of People's Commissars, Nadezhda Krupskaya (Vladimir Lenin's wife and the People's Commissar of State for Education) was one of the main contributors to the cause of the Pioneer movement. In 1922, she wrote an essay called "Russian Union of the Communist Youth and boy-Scoutism." However, it was the remaining scoutmasters themselves who supported the Komsomol and the Red Army, who introduced the name "Pioneer" to it and convinced the Komsomol to adapt the Scout symbols and rituals. [2]

The first Pioneer organization was founded in Soviet Russia in 1922. Later, similar organizations were founded in the countries of the Eastern Bloc and other Communist states.

The Pioneer movement was modeled in many aspects on the Scout movement. The two movements share some principles like preparedness and promotion of sports and outdoor skills. The motto Always prepared! was adapted by the pioneer movement from the Scout Motto.

A member of the movement is known as a Pioneer, with the name stemming from the pioneering activity in Scouting. A neckerchief  –typically red, but sometimes light blue –is the traditional item of clothing worn by a pioneer. This tradition was adapted from the Scout uniform.

But there are some distinct differences between the two movements. Most notably, the Scout movement is independent of government control and political parties. In contrast, the Pioneer movement is controlled by the Communist Party and includes teaching of communist principles. Opponents of Communism claim that this is a form of indoctrination.

Pioneer movements have existed and still exist in countries where the Communist Party is in power as well as in some countries where the Communist Party is in opposition, if the party is large enough to support a children's organization. In countries ruled by Communist Parties, membership of the pioneer movement is officially optional. However, membership provides many benefits, so the vast majority of children typically join the movement (although at different ages).[ citation needed ] During the existence of the Soviet Union, thousands of Young Pioneer camps and Young Pioneer Palaces were built exclusively for Young Pioneers, which were free of charge, sponsored by the government and trade unions. There were many newspapers and magazines published for Young Pioneers in millions of copies.

A national pioneer organization is often named after a famous party member that is considered a suitable role model for young communists, such as Vladimir Lenin in the Soviet Union, Enver Hoxha in Albania, Georgi Dimitrov in Bulgaria, José Martí in Cuba, Ernst Thälmann in East Germany, Damdin Sükhbaatar in Mongolia, and Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam.

The Movement of the First is a state-sponsored effort to initiate a follow-up of the pioneer movement in modern Russia.

Countries with current Pioneer movements

Emblem of the Korean Children's Union Emblem of Korean Youth Corps.svg
Emblem of the Korean Children's Union

The Pioneer movement now exists in these countries:

Older children could continue in other communist organizations, but that would typically be done only by a limited number of people.

The communist parties in Russia and other countries continue to run a pioneer organization, but membership tends to be quite limited.

Pioneer movements of the past

Emblem of the Union of Pioneers of Yugoslavia Emblem of Union of Pioneers of Yugoslavia.svg
Emblem of the Union of Pioneers of Yugoslavia
Emblem of the Dimitrovist Pioneer Organization "Septemberists" Dimitrovist Pioneer Organization "Septemberists" Logo.png
Emblem of the Dimitrovist Pioneer Organization "Septemberists"
Emblem of the Pioneer Youths of Burma Logo of a youth organization in Socialist Burma 02.png
Emblem of the Pioneer Youths of Burma

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Communist Party of the Soviet Union</span> Founding and ruling party of the Soviet Union

The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU), at some points known as the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) and All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), sometimes referred to as the Soviet Communist Party (SCP), and formerly known as the Bolshevik Party, was the founding and ruling political party of the Soviet Union. The CPSU was the sole governing party of the Soviet Union until 1990 when the Congress of People's Deputies modified Article 6 of the 1977 Soviet Constitution, which had previously granted the CPSU a monopoly over the political system. The party's main ideology was Marxism-Leninism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burma Socialist Programme Party</span> Ruling party of Burma from 1962 to 1988

The Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) was Burma's ruling party from 1962 to 1988 and sole legal party from 1964 to 1988. Party chairman Ne Win overthrew the country's democratically elected government in a coup d'état on 2 March 1962. For the next 26 years, the BSPP governed Burma under a totalitarian military dictatorship, until mass protests in 1988 pressured party officials to adopt a multi-party system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Octobrists</span> Soviet Union childrens organization

Little Octobrists is the name of a youth organization for children between 7 and 9 years of age in the Soviet Union. After the age of nine, in the 3rd grade, Little Octobrists would typically join the Young Pioneer organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organisation</span> Youth organisation in East Germany

The Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organisation, consisting of the Young Pioneers and the Thälmann Pioneers, was a youth organisation of schoolchildren aged 6 to 13 in East Germany. They were named after Ernst Thälmann, the former leader of the Communist Party of Germany, who was executed at the Buchenwald concentration camp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oleg Koshevoy</span>

Oleg Vasilyevich Koshevoy was a Soviet partisan and one of the founders of the clandestine organization Young Guard, which fought the Nazi forces in Krasnodon during World War II between 1941 and 1945.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scouting controversy and conflict</span> Controversy within the youth movement

There are various controversies and conflicts that involve the Scouting movement. Scouting has sometimes become entangled in social controversies such as in nationalist resistance movements in India. Scouting was introduced to Africa by British officials as an instrument of colonial authority but became a subversive challenge to the legitimacy of British imperialism as Scouting fostered solidarity amongst African Scouts. There are also controversies and challenges within the Scout Movement itself such as current efforts to turn Scouts Canada into a democratic organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Socialist Patriotic Youth League</span> North Korean political youth organization

The Socialist Patriotic Youth League is a North Korean youth organization. It is the main youth organization in North Korea. Directly under the party Central Committee, it is the only mass organization expressly mentioned in the charter of the Workers' Party of Korea. Youth under 15 may join the Young Pioneer Corps, itself a part of the larger Korean Children's Union. The organization, modeled after the Komsomol in the former Soviet Union, includes all North Koreans without party membership between the ages of 15 and 30, although married women who opt to become housewives are transferred to the Socialist Women's Union. Officially, the guiding ideology of the organization is Kimilsungism–Kimjongilism.

Young Pioneers may refer to:

In Russia, efforts to build communism began after Tsar Nicholas II lost his power during the February Revolution, which started in 1917, and ended with the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. The Provisional Government was established under the liberal and social-democratic government; however, the Bolsheviks refused to accept the government and revolted in October 1917, taking control of Russia. Vladimir Lenin, their leader, rose to power and governed between 1917 and 1924.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Korean Children's Union</span> North Korean political youth organization

The Korean Children's Union (KCU) is the precursor to the Socialist Patriotic Youth League of North Korea contributing to North Korean youth movement and pioneer movement. It is for children aged six to fifteen and is a political organisation linked to the Workers' Party of Korea. Its uniformed branch is known as the Young Pioneer Corps, which admits children and pre-teens ages nine to 15. The organization operates chapters in elementary and secondary schools nationwide. It teaches children about Juche, and other ideologies behind the North Korean system. Youth above the age of 15 may join the Socialist Patriotic Youth League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pioneer Organization of the Socialist Youth Union</span>

Pionýr, officially Pioneer Organization of the Socialist Youth Union, was a youth Marxist-Leninist organization in communist Czechoslovakia that was a subdivision of the Socialist Youth Union. Although the organisation proclaimed to be voluntary, every child was expected to join from the age of six.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Komsomol of Ukraine</span> Youth wing of the Communist Party of Ukraine

The Komsomol of Ukraine, officially the Leninist Communist League of Youth of Ukraine, was a youth organization in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic under the Communist Party of Ukraine, a component part of the All-Union Lenin's Communist League of Youth (Komsomol). It was first established in 1919 as the youth wing of the Communist Party (Bolsheviks) of Ukraine and later revived in 1997 as the youth wing of the modern Communist Party of Ukraine; that party was banned in 2015 and terminated in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Komsomol</span> Youth division of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union

The All-Union Leninist Young Communist League, usually known as Komsomol, was a political youth organization in the Soviet Union. It is sometimes described as the youth division of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU), although it was officially independent and referred to as "the helper and the reserve of the CPSU".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World Federation of Democratic Youth</span> International left-wing youth organisation

The World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY) is an international youth organization, and has historically characterized itself as left-wing and anti-imperialist. WFDY was founded in London, United Kingdom in 1945 as a broad international youth movement, organized in the context of the end of World War II with the aim of uniting youth from the Allies behind an anti-fascist platform that was broadly pro-peace, anti-nuclear war, expressing friendship between youth of the capitalist and socialist nations. The WFDY Headquarters are in Budapest, Hungary. The main event of WFDY is the World Festival of Youth and Students. The last festival was held in Sochi, Russia, in October 2017. It was one of the first organizations granted general consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young Pioneers (Soviet Union)</span> Soviet Union youth organization

The Vladimir Lenin All-Union Pioneer Organization, abbreviated as the Young Pioneers, was a compulsory youth organization of the Soviet Union for children and adolescents ages 9–14 that existed between 1922 and 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young Communist International</span> Parallel international youth organization affiliated with the Communist International (Comintern)

The Young Communist International was the parallel international youth organization affiliated with the Communist International (Comintern).

Communist symbolism represents a variety of themes, including revolution, the proletariat, the peasantry, agriculture, or international solidarity. The red flag, the hammer and sickle and the red star or variations thereof are some of the symbols adopted by communist movements, governments, and parties worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lansin Lu-nge</span>

Lan-sin Lu-nge Aphwe was a youth organization in Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma for high school and university students to learn useful skills and about the socialist politics of the Burma Socialist Programme Party. It consisted of three main branches: Tei-za Lu-nge, Shei-hsaung Lu-nge and Lan-sin Lu-nge. Teiza Lu-nge wore blue scarf and Shei-hsaung Lu-nge wore the Red scarf.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Always prepared</span>

Always prepared is the motto of the Pioneer movement, adopted by most of the Pioneer organizations in socialist countries. The motto is a common feature on the organizations' badges. The motto echoes the Scout motto, "Be Prepared." After the end of the Russian Civil War, the Scout organization of the former Tsarist Russia was replaced with the Young Pioneers. The modification of the Scout's motto was suggested by the leaders of Russian Scouts who supported the Red Army and the Komsomol. The Scout motto, in use since 1907, meant that Scouts needed to be physically and mentally ready. The "always ready" of the young pioneers is mostly related to socialism, peace and country building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leninist Young Communist League of Lithuania</span> Lithuanian branch of the Soviet Komsomol

The Leninist Young Communist League of Lithuania or Lithuanian Komsomol was the Lithuanian branch of the Soviet Komsomol that served as the youth organ of the Communist Party of Lithuania. The organization was for youth ages 14 to 28. Younger children were organized into Pioneers and Little Octobrists. Since Komsomol was the only legal youth organization in the Soviet Union, it had significant impact and influence on the youth.

References

  1. ↑ Lewis Stegelbaum and Andrei Sokolov, Stalinism As A Way Of Life, p. 374 ISBN   0-300-08480-3
  2. ↑ (in German) Sebastian Waack: Lenins Kinder: Zur Genealogie der Pfadfinder und Pioniere in Russland 1908–1924. wvb, Berlin 2008. ISBN   978-3-86573-356-6
  3. ↑ IFM-SEI list of members Archived 2009-02-21 at the Wayback Machine , retrieved 2009-02-22
  4. ↑ "Young Pioneers honoured on Brigade's 65th anniversary". Vietnam News Agency. Archived from the original on August 10, 2007. Retrieved June 29, 2006.
  5. ↑ Ññī Ññī (1978). "7". မြန်မာနိုင်ငံအမျိုးသားမော်ကွန်း(၁၉၇၅) မျက်မှောက်ကာလမြန်မာနိုင်ငံမှတ်တမ်း [Mranʻ mā Nuiṅʻ ṅaṃ ʾa myui ̋sā ̋moʻ kvanʻ ̋(1975): myakʻ mhokʻ kāla Mranʻ mā Nuiṅʻ ṅaṃ mhatʻ tamʻ ̋, Volume 1] (in Burmese). Pugaṃ Cā ʼupʻ tuikʻ.
  6. ↑ မောင်ကြီးလှ; ပန်းချီကိုဇော်ဝင်း (October 1984). "တို့တေဇလူငယ်" [Our Teiza Lu-nge / Our Glorious Youth]. ၁၉၈၄ခုနှစ်‌ အောက်တိုဘာလ တေဇ ရုပ်စုံ အထူးထုတ် [1984 October, Teiza Comic Magazine, Special Edition] (in Burmese). Myawaddy Publishing, Ministry of Information. p. 5.
  7. ↑ "Lin San Tyna on Facebook". Facebook . Archived from the original on 2022-04-30.[ user-generated source ]
  8. ↑ Decalo, Samuel (1997). Historical Dictionary of the Niger (3rd ed.). Boston & Folkestone: Scarecrow Press. ISBN   0-8108-3136-8.: 173–4, 171–2 
  9. ↑ Anarchism in America
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.