Pin DDR about 25 years of participation of the FDJ, the Free German Youth Organisation.
The Free German Youth, also known as the FDJ (in German Freie Deutsche Jugend), is a youth movement in Germany. Formerly it was the official youth movement of the DDR and the Socialist Unity Party of Germany. The color blue was their primary colour.
The organization was meant for young people, both male and female, between the ages of 14 and 25. In 1981 it had 2.3 million members. After being a member of the Thalmann Pioneers, which was for schoolchildren ages 6 to 14, East German youths would usually join the FDJ. Those who did not join lost access to organized holidays, and found it difficult to be admitted to universities, pursue chosen careers etc. The majority of youths who refused to join did so for religious reasons.
While the movement was intended to promote Marxist–Leninist ideology among East Germany’s young people, it also arranged thousands of holidays for young people through its Jugendtourist agency, and ran discos and open air rock concerts.