Socialist German Workers Youth

Socialist German Workers Youth (German: Sozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterjugend, abbreviated SDAJ in German and in English as SGWY) is a political youth organization in Germany. It is a Marxist–Leninist organization and related to the Deutsche Kommunistische Partei (German Communist Party). SDAJ is a member of World Federation of Democratic Youth.

History

1968–1977

SDAJ was formed on May 5, 1968, the 150th birthday of Karl Marx. The SDAJ participated in social movements which grew from the 1968's student movement. It became one of the leading left-wing youth organizations in West Germany and enjoyed a high political profile – for example, in actions against fare increases ("Red Dot Actions"). The SDAJ claimed it had over 35,000 members.

1978–1987

From 1978 to 1988, the SDAJ organized the Festival of Youth biyearly together with the Marxist Student Association Spartacus (MSB). The Festival of Youth was held mid-may on the grounds of the Dortmud exhibition. Numerous internationally known artists attended; for example, the 1978 festival saw figures such as Jutta Weinhold, Snowball, Udo Lindenberg, Pudys and the Titi Winterstein Quintet. Political debates were also a common feature. According to the SDAJ, more than 100,000 visitors attended.

Until the fall of the GDR, there were close contacts between the SDAJ and Free German Youth (FDJ), which was considered a sibling organization.

In the 1980s, the SDAJ played a major role in the West German peace movement.

1988–1997

In 1988, conflicts emerged in SDAJ and DKP as reformist tendencies gained strength. At the SDAJ Federal Congress of 1989 there was a split in the organization, as the majority of the delegates voted for a proposal that would keep the SDAJ as a Marxist working class youth organization. The defeated grouping around the then national chairman Birgit Radow then left the Congress. The Radow group did not, however, succeed in creating new structures nationwide. Many of her former leading members found a new home in the youth structures of the PDS.

With the fall of the GDR and the reunification of Germany, the crisis erupted in SDAJ and DKP. As the funding from GDR was discontinued, full-time employees had to be laid off. Until about 1993, the SDAJ remained virtually without functioning central coordination. In 1994 the reorganization and reactivation of district and local associations began. As of the late 1990s local groups had been stabilized and new groups established in places like Leipzig, Dresden, Gera, Potsdam, Rostock, Gadebusch and Berlin.

1998-Today

Due to the slight increase in membership, the bi-annual Festival of Youth was refounded in 2008 in Jugendpark of Cologne.

In October 2011, the SDAJ held its 20th national congress of Hanover.

References

External links

• Web site of the SDAJ