Union of Czech Youth

The Union of Czech Youth (Czech: Svaz české mládeže, abbreviated SČM) was a youth organization in post-war Czechoslovakia. The organization was founded on Radhošť in July 1945.[1][2] Originally it functioned as a unified left-wing youth organization, over time the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia gained more influence.[2] SČM had two deputies in the Provisional National Assembly, Hájek and Maleček.[3] As of 1946 SČM claimed to have 7,200 local branches and around half a million members.[3] Membership in the organization declined during 1946 and 1947.[4] The organization published the daily newspaper Mladá fronta.[5] SČM was part of the National Front.[6]

Czech Youth Union
Svaz české mládeže
Founded4 June 1945
Dissolved23 April 1949
Merged intoCzechoslovak Youth Union
HeadquartersPrague, Czechoslovakia
Ideology
Mother partyCommunist Party of Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovak Social Democracy
(4 June 1945 – 27 June 1948)
Czechoslovak National Socialist Party
(4 June 1945 – 8 May 1946)
International affiliationWorld Federation of Democratic Youth
National affiliationNational Front
NewspaperMladá fronta
SČM poster, announcing a Graeme Bell concert.

Dissolution

After 1948 Czechoslovak coup d'état, the communists planned to merge all youth groups fully under one organization. On 23 April 1949 Czech Youth Union merged with its Slovak counterpart, the Union of Slovak Youth, and formed the Czechoslovak Youth Union, organization under direct control of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.[1]

References
  1. National Union of Czechoslovak Students (Czechoslovakia) (1950). Students in Czechoslovakia. National Union of Czechoslovak Students. p. 13.
  2. Vlastislav Chalupa (1958). The National Front in Czechoslovakia. Czechoslavak, Foreign Institute in Exile. pp. 17, 65.
  3. The Bulletin of the Ministry of Information, 1st Department. The Ministry. March 1946. p. 336.
  4. Univerzita J.E. Purkyně v Brně. Filozofická fakulta (1967). Sbornǐk praci: Řada sociálněvědná (G). p. 46.
  5. Bradley F. Abrams (2005). The Struggle for the Soul of the Nation: Czech Culture and the Rise of Communism. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 148. ISBN 978-0-7425-3024-9.
  6. Yuwen Li (6 May 2016). NGOs in China and Europe: Comparisons and Contrasts. Routledge. p. 252. ISBN 978-1-317-08761-8.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.