Swingjugend

When the restrictions on jazz became law, their pastime became a political statement, setting them in clear opposition to the Nazi Party.Kater, M. H. (2004). ''Hitler Youth''. Cambridge, Mass: [[Harvard University Press]]. {{ISBN|978-0-674-01991-1}} German musicologist Guido Fackler described the ''Swingjugend'' embrace of American music and the "English style" in clothing as reflecting the fact that:

The ''Swingjugend'' rejected the Nazi state, above all because of its ideology and uniformity, its militarism, the '[[Führer principle]]' and the leveling ''[[Volksgemeinschaft]]'' (people's community). They experienced a massive restriction of their personal freedom. They rebelled against all this with jazz and swing, which stood for a love of life, [[self-determination]], non-conformism, freedom, independence, liberalism, and internationalism.{{cite web |last=Fackler |first=Guido |title=Swing Kids Behind Barbed Wire |publisher=Music and the Holocaust |date=26 July 2013 |url=http://holocaustmusic.ort.org/politics-and-propaganda/third-reich/swing-kids-behind-barbed-wire/ |access-date=21 June 2016}}

When the restrictions on jazz became law, their pastime became a political statement, setting them in clear opposition to the Nazi Party.Kater, M. H. (2004). ''Hitler Youth''. Cambridge, Mass: [[Harvard University Press]]. {{ISBN|978-0-674-01991-1}} German musicologist Guido Fackler described the ''Swingjugend'' embrace of American music and the "English style" in clothing as reflecting the fact that:

The ''Swingjugend'' rejected the Nazi state, above all because of its ideology and uniformity, its militarism, the '[[Führer principle]]' and the leveling ''[[Volksgemeinschaft]]'' (people's community). They experienced a massive restriction of their personal freedom. They rebelled against all this with jazz and swing, which stood for a love of life, [[self-determination]], non-conformism, freedom, independence, liberalism, and internationalism.{{cite web |last=Fackler |first=Guido |title=Swing Kids Behind Barbed Wire |publisher=Music and the Holocaust |date=26 July 2013 |url=http://holocaustmusic.ort.org/politics-and-propaganda/third-reich/swing-kids-behind-barbed-wire/ |access-date=21 June 2016}}

Reflecting their [[Anglophile|Anglophilia]], the Swing Youth preferred to speak to each other in English rather than German, as English was felt to be more "cool", a choice of language that vexed the authorities greatly.Peukert, Detlev ''Inside Nazi Germany'', London: B. T. Batsford, 1987, p. 167. English together with French were languages widely taught in ''[[Gymnasium (school)|Gymnasium]]'' (high schools intended as preparation for university) since the early 20th century in the case of the former and since the 18th century in the case of the latter, so any German teenager who attended a ''Gymnasium'' could speak at least some French and English. As the Swing Youth were Anglophiles, they often tried to speak and write in the "English style". One "swing boy", in a 1940 letter written in slightly broken English to a friend who was going to Hamburg, stated: "Be a proper spokesmen for Kiel, won't you? i.e, make sure you're really casual, singing or whistling English hits all the time, absolutely smashed and always surrounded by really amazing women". Hamburg, the most Anglophile of German cities, was regarded as the "capital" of the Swing Youth, and British jazz players like [[Jack Hylton]] and [[Nat Gonella]] were popular with the Swing Youth, through Willet wrote that they "... were sufficiently sophisticated to appreciate the superiority of the American artists as well as the stylish and sensuous qualities of their performances." The Swing Youth were also Americanophiles as many took monikers like Alaska Bill or Texas Jack and their clubs had such names like ''Harlem Club'', ''OK Gang Club'', and ''Cotton Club''.

Reflecting their [[Anglophile|Anglophilia]], the Swing Youth preferred to speak to each other in English rather than German, as English was felt to be more "cool", a choice of language that vexed the authorities greatly.Peukert, Detlev ''Inside Nazi Germany'', London: B. T. Batsford, 1987, p. 167. English and French were languages widely taught in ''[[Gymnasium (school)|Gymnasium]]'' (high schools intended as preparation for university) since the early 20th century in the case of English and since the 18th century in the case of French, so any German teenager who attended a ''Gymnasium'' could speak at least some French and English.

As the Swing Youth were Anglophiles, they often tried to speak and write in the "English style". One "swing boy", in a 1940 letter written in slightly broken English to a friend who was going to Hamburg, stated: "Be a proper spokesmen for [[Kiel]], won't you? i.e, make sure you're really casual, singing or whistling English hits all the time, absolutely smashed and always surrounded by really amazing women".

Hamburg, the most Anglophile of German cities, was regarded as the "capital" of the Swing Youth, and British jazz players like [[Jack Hylton]] and [[Nat Gonella]] were popular with the Swing Youth. Willet wrote that they "... were sufficiently sophisticated to appreciate the superiority of the American artists as well as the stylish and sensuous qualities of their performances." The Swing Youth were also Americanophiles. Many took monikers like Alaska Bill or Texas Jack and their clubs had such names like ''Harlem Club'', ''OK Gang Club'', and ''Cotton Club''.

For those designated non-[[Aryan]], it became even more dangerous to be associated with the swing crowd by November 1938, during and after ''{{lang|de|[[Kristallnacht]]}}''. The "Swing Youth" tended to welcome Jewish and ''{{Lang|de|[[Mischling]]e}}'' ("half-breed") teenagers who wanted to join their gatherings. Affiliation with the jazz culture was damaging whenever other incriminating information could be factored into a formula for persecution. For example, many half-[[Jew]]s were sought out and persecuted before others if they were known as Swing Kids.

For those designated non-[[Aryan]], it became even more dangerous to be associated with the swing crowd by November 1938, during and after ''{{lang|de|[[Kristallnacht]]}}''. The "Swing Youth" tended to welcome Jewish and ''{{Lang|de|[[Mischling]]e}}'' ("half-breed") teenagers who wanted to join their gatherings. Affiliation with the jazz culture was damaging whenever other incriminating information could be factored into a formula for persecution. For example, many half-[[Jew]]s were sought out and persecuted before others if they were known as Swing Kids.

[[Jazz]] music was offensive to [[Nazi ideology]], because it was often performed by [[Black People|black people]] and a number of Jewish musicians. They called it "Negro Music" ({{langx|de|[[Negermusik]]|links=no}}), "degenerate music"—coined in parallel to "degenerate art" ({{langx|de|[[entartete Kunst]]|links=no}}). Song texts defied Nazi ideology, going as far as to promote sexual permissiveness or [[free love]]. Despite this, not all jazz was forbidden in Germany at the time.{{cite news |title=Youth Resistance in Wartime Germany |url=https://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A3059255 |work=[[h2g2]] |date=13 April 2005 |access-date=18 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160817020818/https://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A3059255 |archive-date=17 August 2016 |url-status=live}} German art policy was very similar to the Soviet Union at this time, with espousal of [[Heroic Realism]], which was very similar to [[Socialist realism]] in that it saw art as an instrument of the party.

[[Jazz]] music was offensive to [[Nazi ideology]], because it was often performed by [[Black People|black people]] and a number of Jewish musicians. They called it "Negro Music" ({{langx|de|[[Negermusik]]|links=no}}), "degenerate music"—coined in parallel to "degenerate art" ({{langx|de|[[entartete Kunst]]|links=no}}). Song texts defied Nazi ideology, going as far as to promote sexual permissiveness or [[free love]]. Despite this, not all jazz was forbidden in Germany at the time.{{cite news |title=Youth Resistance in Wartime Germany |url=https://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A3059255 |work=[[h2g2]] |date=13 April 2005 |access-date=18 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160817020818/https://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A3059255 |archive-date=17 August 2016 |url-status=live}} German art policy was very similar to the Soviet Union at this time, with espousal of [[Heroic Realism]], which was very similar to [[Socialist realism]] in that it saw art as an instrument of the party.

The Swing Kids were initially basically apolitical, similar to their [[zoot suit]]er counterparts in [[North America]]. A closer parallel to the Swing Youth were the [[Zazou]] movement in France at the same time, for the ''Zazous'' also enjoyed American music, liked to dress in the "English style", and had a preference for speaking English over French as the former was felt to be more "cool". In Austria, the term ''Schlurf'' was used for a similar group.{{cite journal |title=The Schlurfs - youth against Nazism |journal=Organise! |date=Winter 2008 |volume=71 |url= https://libcom.org/history/schlurfs-%E2%80%93-youth-against-nazism |access-date=26 November 2017}} A popular term that the swing subculture used to define itself was ''{{lang|de|Lottern}}'', roughly translated as something between "laziness" and "sleaziness", indicating contempt for the pressure to do "useful work" and the repressive sexual mores of the time. Reports by [[Hitler Youth]] observers of [[Swing (dance)|swing parties]] and [[jitterbug]] went into careful detail about the overtly sexual nature of both. One report describes as "moral depravity" the fact that swing youth took pleasure in their sexuality. The German historian [[Detlev Peukert]] noted how much the police reports on the Swing Youth obsessively concentrated on the subject of the Swing Youth's "unabashed pleasure in sexuality", though he cautioned that some of the more sensationalist claims about the sexual lives of the Swing Youth in these reports probably said more about the mindset of the people who wrote them than what the Swing Youth were actually doing. In particular, Peukert wrote that the lurid claims made by the police that Swing Youth dance sessions were followed up by [[group sex]] seems to have had no basis in reality.

The Swing Kids were initially basically apolitical, similar to their [[zoot suit]]er counterparts in [[North America]]. A closer parallel to the Swing Youth were the [[Zazou]] movement in France at the same time, for the ''Zazous'' also enjoyed American music, liked to dress in the "English style", and had a preference for speaking English over French as the former was felt to be more "cool". In Austria, the term ''Schlurf'' was used for a similar group.{{cite journal |title=The Schlurfs - youth against Nazism |journal=Organise! |date=Winter 2008 |volume=71 |url= https://libcom.org/history/schlurfs-%E2%80%93-youth-against-nazism |access-date=26 November 2017}} A popular term that the swing subculture used to define itself was ''{{lang|de|Lottern}}'', roughly translated as something between "laziness" and "sleaziness", indicating contempt for the pressure to do "useful work" and the repressive sexual mores of the time. name="Peukert, Detlev page 168"/>

Reports by [[Hitler Youth]] observers of [[Swing (dance)|swing parties]] and [[jitterbug]] went into careful detail about the overtly sexual nature of both. One report describes as "moral depravity" the fact that swing youth took pleasure in their sexuality. The German historian [[Detlev Peukert]] noted how much the police reports on the Swing Youth obsessively concentrated on the subject of the Swing Youth's "unabashed pleasure in sexuality", though he cautioned that some of the more sensationalist claims about the sexual lives of the Swing Youth in these reports probably said more about the mindset of the people who wrote them, than what the Swing Youth were actually doing. In particular, Peukert wrote that the lurid claims made by the police that Swing Youth dance sessions were followed up by [[group sex]] seems to have had no basis in reality.

The Swing Kids were defining a counterculture, shown by their clothing and music. Their behaviour, described by many Nazis as "effete", ran counter to the spartan militarism that the regime was trying to inculcate in its youth. They organised dance festivals and contests and invited jazz bands. These events were occasions to mock the Nazis, the military and the ''{{lang|de|Hitlerjugend}}''—hence the famous "''Swing Heil!''", mocking the infamous "''[[Sieg Heil]]!''".{{cite web |url= http://www.hmd.org.uk/resources/item/227/ |title=Case Study: Swing Kids |access-date=3 October 2008 |work=[[Holocaust Memorial Day (UK)|Holocaust Memorial Day]] Trust |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081109022246/http://www.hmd.org.uk/resources/item/227/ |archive-date=9 November 2008 |url-status=dead}} Swing Kids wore long hair and hats, carried umbrellas and met in cafés and clubs. They developed a [[jargon]] mostly made of anglicisms.(2011, 04). [http://www.studymode.com/essays/Subculture-Swing-Kids-652436.html Subculture Swing Kids]. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 04, 2011

The Swing Kids were defining a counterculture, shown by their clothing and music. Their behaviour, described by many Nazis as "effete", ran counter to the spartan militarism that the regime was trying to inculcate in its youth. They organised dance festivals and contests and invited jazz bands. These events were occasions to mock the Nazis, the military and the ''{{lang|de|Hitlerjugend}}''—hence the famous "''Swing Heil!''", mocking the infamous "''[[Sieg Heil]]!''".{{cite web |url= http://www.hmd.org.uk/resources/item/227/ |title=Case Study: Swing Kids |access-date=3 October 2008 |work=[[Holocaust Memorial Day (UK)|Holocaust Memorial Day]] Trust |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081109022246/http://www.hmd.org.uk/resources/item/227/ |archive-date=9 November 2008 |url-status=dead}} Swing Kids wore long hair and hats, carried umbrellas and met in cafés and clubs. They developed a [[jargon]] mostly made of anglicisms.(2011, 04). [http://www.studymode.com/essays/Subculture-Swing-Kids-652436.html Subculture Swing Kids]. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 04, 2011