I, (surname, name), joining the ranks of the All-Union Pioneer Organization named after Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, solemnly swear in front of my comrades: to passionately love and protect my Motherland, live, study and fight, as the great Lenin bequeathed, as the Communist Party teaches, always fulfill the laws of the pioneers of the Soviet Union. Be ready for the cause of the struggle of the Communist Party! Always ready!
Young Pioneers / Yuny Pioner
Octobrists, Pioneers and Komsomol organizations have long been gone, but for some reason many people still remember how they wore a pioneer tie, how they took an oath, how they collected waste paper and scrap metal.The Vladimir Lenin All-Union Pioneer Organization was the most massive 10-15 year old children’s organisation of the 20th century. At the sunset of the Soviet Union some scandalous works were published, where the organisation of Pioneers was showed as an ideologised formation of the Soviet propaganda compared even to the Hitlerjugend organisation or mockingly presented as "bureau for collection of scrap-iron and scrap paper".
The Ail-Union Pioneer Organization named for Lenin, was founded in 1922, and open to children ages ten to fifteen. The main purpose of the Young Pioneer organization was the rudimentary political indoctrination of Soviet youth. At age fourteen, a Pioneer can enter the Komsomol In 1980 about 20 million children were members of the Pioneer organization.
Military and physical fitness training began at the age of ten in the Pioneers. Their activities emphasized military-patriotic indoctrination, marching, and discipline. The Pioneers also guarded Soviet war monuments and participated in military sports games held every summer since 1967. In the games, children were divided into commanders, staff, and troops for maneuvers that simulated partisan warfare behind enemy lines. Members of the Komsomol, age fourteen and older, participated in more sophisticated military games.
The pioneer movement was by no means a spontaneous and independent creativity of children. It was a constant, multifaceted and purposeful work of the state, often overly formalized and overorganized.
Young Pioneer Organization is said to have been born 19 May 1922. On that day the resolution on establishment of the organisation for the children of proletarians was adopted in the Congress of the Russian Union of the Communist Youth. It was decided that this organisation shall be formed on class-based (proletarian) foundation, whereas the main method of activity organisation shall be ‘reorganized scouting’. The main symbols, rituals and activity forms were borrowed from scouts, though all this was slightly ‘reorganised’. The green scout’s neck tie was replaced by a red one, the three lily petals in the scout’s badger were changed into three flames of the bonfire. Similar division into detachments, principle of play-based activities organisation, romanticisation of activities, young pioneers’ rallies around the bonfires, jamborees similar to scouts and other rituals remained.
On May 19, 1922, the 2nd All-Russian Conference of the Komsomol decided to create pioneer detachments everywhere. In honor of this event, May 19 was celebrated in the USSR as the Pioneer's Birthday. In Soviet times, on Pioneer Day, "Lenin's lessons" were held in schools, the results were summed up in the competition between links, detachments and squads in academic performance, in collecting scrap metal, waste paper, and the like. Also on Pioneer Day, meetings, concerts, competitions, awards for distinguished pioneers and schoolchildren, pioneer parades and rallies were held.
The pioneer had to meet the ideal. An ideally educated pioneer was ready for everything: even to die if the party asked. The soviet propaganda used an image of pioneer-hero as a prototype of an ideal pioneer. This image was being created employing both life stories of children, who really existed and various propaganda tricks. The examples of heroism were also illustrated employing artistic means as well: music, fine arts, photography, films, literature and others.
Third-graders waited for the transition to the pioneers. Moreover, excellent students were sometimes dedicated six months earlier, in October. Others were tied with a pioneer tie already in April, on Lenin's birthday. A tie was supposed to be worn until high school. If for some reason the child was not accepted as a pioneer with his class, then he was accepted later on an individual basis. Although, it was understood that only worthy and conscious children could be pioneers, they accepted everyone without exception.
“Being a young pioneer is a great honor for a student Pioneers are those who pave the way for others, for all who follow them. Pioneer means advanced" - with these lines begins a chapter in the pioneer's notebook "Comrade" for 1959-1960. Pioneers were people who, “without fear of difficulties, were the first to pave the way in impenetrable virgin forests, in the mountains and on the seas, the first to plant gardens and apply conjecture in work, as in our time it is done by innovative workers, inventors, explorers of the bowels, people developing virgin lands, scientists and travelers. The pioneers of communism are the fighters for the cause of the liberation of the working people, for the building of a new society”.
The pioneers had a uniform - a white shirt and dark trousers or a skirt. The uniform instilled frugality, accuracy, discipline, but on the other hand, it is a method of leveling society, in this case, its parts, when one is like everyone else, the principle of collectivism. It turns out that the authorities quite clearly built up the education of a Soviet citizen, pointing out from childhood - “keep your head down”, be like everyone else (the so-called wear a uniform).
In general, the symbolism, the presence of a tie, badge, uniforms had a special meaning. Pioneer ties were strictly obligatory for Soviet schoolchildren. The tie "should be worn by every pioneer as a sign of belonging" to a pioneer organization". The ideological side is also emphasized here - "red is the color soaked in the blood of brave fighters for the cause of communism." Three ends are a sign of the indestructible friendship of communists, Komsomol members, pioneers - that is, the connection of generations, continuity.
The three tongues of flame on the five-pointed star of the pioneer badge with a hammer and sickle, the emblem of the USSR, have the same meaning. Pioneer badge uses the image of Lenin mature years. Below the portrait of Ilyich is a ribbon with a review of the pioneer. To the appeal “Pioneer, be ready to fight for the cause of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union!” any pioneer immediately responded: "Always ready." Three flames symbolized the unity of the pioneers, Komsomol members and communists. And together they formed a bonfire, which became a symbol of the pioneer movement in ancient times, when the first detachments went on campaigns in their native land.
Pioneer salute is the third obligatory attribute of a pioneer. “Pioneer greeting - five fingers of the right hand, tightly compressed, rise above the head. The situations in which the pioneer salutes are indicative: during the performance of the Anthem of the Soviet Union, the anthems of the Union republics, the party anthem "The Internationale", as well as when passing by the monuments to Lenin, the fighters of the revolution, the heroes of the Civil and Great Patriotic Wars".
The evolution of the pioneer call began in 1920 as: “Be ready to fight for the working cause” “Always ready!”. The key words "struggle", "workers" and "ready" accurately reflected the specifics of the historical period - the end of the civil war, and, as before, the search for class enemies - the struggle, the victory of the proletariat - "workers", and, finally, consent, acceptance pioneers of these rules, is expressed in the call "ready".
The change in the policy of the party, with the curtailment of the NEP, made its own adjustments to the pioneer call - the "workers' cause" was replaced by the "cause of Lenin-Stalin ". It became an obvious example of how the cult of the leader permeated all spheres of public life, right down to the children's organization. The setting of two names on the same level without signs punctuation (a dash in Russian can usually be replaced by the word “this”, i.e. it turns out Lenin is Stalin) on a subconscious level makes people accept Stalin as correct, necessary,
The strength of ideological education was expressed in its continuity - the next step was pioneering. Formally, admission to the ranks of the pioneers was considered voluntary, in fact, it was a mandatory step. The event was also held in a solemn atmosphere, but already with a great manifestation of patriotic sentiments - there was always a horn, drums, senior comrades taught to tie a tie and salute with the right hand raised to the forehead.
It must be said that the pioneers had a wide field of activity. March "Always ready", which provided for the preparation of Little Octoberists and their adoption as pioneers. To do this, leaders' detachments were created from high school students who held various events, talked about Pioneer heroes, a pioneer organization, played the game "Zarnichka" on the ground, reviewed the system and songs. The team worked hard on the education of patriots. For this, two armies of "red" and "blue" were created. Every week, on one of the days, the zarnichniks were trained in specialties: signalmen who studied the Morse code had to encrypt texts-reports, orders; orderlies learned to provide first aid; scouts learned to read a map, walk in azimuth, know geographical signs. All zarnichniks were taught by Komsomol members, teachers, medical workers.
Every year in October, a radio line was held, which reported on the new direction of the pioneer squads. A lot of useful things were done: museums were created, corners of glory were decorated, meetings and rallies were held. General constructions extended not only to the school - in the pioneer camps, morning lines, reports of the pioneer leaders of the detachments to the main pioneer leader - were an obligatory daily ritual. Memorable and important events ended with a pioneer bonfire - an unforgettable event in the life of every Soviet Pioneer tie and badgeschoolchild. Collection of waste paper, scrap metal, patronage assistance to veterans, participation in Zarnitsy, all kinds of creative circles - this is only part of the rich pioneer life.
The feeling of an elbow, solidarity and pride in their invincible country shaped the communist worldview in the younger generation. Moral standards, discipline, honesty, courage were fixed in the mind for the rest of his life. This patriotism was well traced during the years of the Great Patriotic War, when the pioneers took an active part in the fight against the enemy - working in the fields, enterprises, fully replacing adults. Great help in organizing the pioneer movement was provided by the workers of the district House of Pioneers, the district committee of the Komsomol.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union (1991), the pioneer organisations met different fate in separate soviet republics. In some countries (e.g., in Russia, Byelorussia) pioneers’ activities were continued, whereas in other former soviet republics pioneer organisations ceased to exist (e.g., in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia).
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