The meaning of the word "Komsomolets" is incomprehensible to the modern generation. People who found Soviet times remember very well what it means. Komsomolets is a young communist, the future leader of party cells. Under the political monopoly of the CPSU, it was impossible to get to the top of power without the Komsomol. This is the first step in an authoritarian hierarchy. About who the Komsomol members are, further in the article.
Meaning of the word
This concept occurred by abbreviation from the name of the organization - the All-Union Leninist Communist Youth Union (Komsomol). Therefore, the Komsomolets is a member of this organization.
Requirements for candidates in the Komsomol
Not everyone could become members of the Komsomol. Komsomolets is a future member of the party, the elite of society. Not every person could get here. The main criteria:
- Age. Young people from 14 to 28 years old could become members of the Komsomol. In practice, adolescents rarely entered the Union.
- Personal achievements. Komsomolets is an excellent student in studies, an activist. He must attend military-patriotic circles. It is advisable that the candidate go through the entire ideological chain of "October - Pioneer - Komsomolets." Naturally, there should be only positive characteristics.
- Recommendations It is imperative that someone recommends the candidate. This can be done either by a respected communist, or by a couple of other Komsomol members.
- Knowledge. Before taking a mini-exam. Of course, questions were known to everyone at that time: about the general secretaries of the Central Committee of the CPSU, related to the history and orders of the Komsomol, about the first secretaries of the organization, etc.
All requirements were formal. Often not respected. Sometimes, for the sake of numbers, less worthy candidates were selected.
How many orders does the Komsomol have, or Formalism in making
At the end of the era of socialism, getting into the Komsomol was simple: write a statement and go through an interview. The questions were template, the answers to them are simple. The most common is how many orders the Komsomol has. There were six of them. Three Orders of Lenin, the remaining three - the Order of the Fighting Red Banner, the Red Banner of Labor and the October Revolution. It was not difficult to answer other questions. For example, it was necessary to name the current Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee. We think that few today do not know the current leader of our state.
Contributions
All Komsomol members were required to pay contributions. For students and army men, the amount was two pennies. At the prices of that time, these are two boxes of matches. For working members, the contribution was one percent of the salary.
The tragic fate of pre-war leaders
Komsomol was proud to be the same age as the revolution. In fact, since October 1917, youth unions did not have a single organization. The official date of the formation of the Komsomol is October 29, 1918. On this day, the First All-Russian Congress of Unions of Workers and Peasants' Youth took place.
The fate of all the pre-war leaders of the Komsomol was tragic. The first was elected Yefim Tsetlin. In 1937 he was shot as an "enemy of the people." During the years of Stalinist repressions, this fate befell five other pre-war leaders of the Komsomol. Of the first seven pre-war leaders of the Komsomol, only one died his death. It was Alexander Milchakov. He “easily” got off - got 17 years of camps.
History of the Komsomol
As mentioned above, the First Congress of the RKSM was held on October 29, 1918. It lasted until November 4. The name of the organization has changed. The RKSM soon changed its name to the RLKSM (Russian Leninist Communist Youth Union), and since 1956, the Komsomol.
In 1928, the Union received the first order - the Fighting Red Banner for its merits and heroism during the Civil War and for repelling foreign intervention.
There were six of them: the Red Banner of Labor (1931) for the first Five-Year Plan, the October Revolution (1968), three Orders of Lenin (1945, 1948, 1956).
In addition to the Battle Red Banner and one order of Lenin, all other awards were wording “for active socialist construction”. There is no pathos in this. The Komsomol, indeed, lifted the country from its knees: these were the first virgin lands, the Baikal-Amur Railway was built with their hands, they built cities, factories, factories. Komsomol members were never indifferent when the Lenin Party needed them. Therefore, many elderly people, former Komsomol members, so painfully perceived the collapse of the Union, the privatization of factories built by their hands.
At the end of September 1991, the XXII Extraordinary Congress of the Komsomol took place. On it, the organization announced self-dissolution. As stated at the congress, the Union has exhausted its capabilities.
Who is a Komsomol member at the sunset of socialism
At the end of the 80s. The twentieth century, the crisis of Soviet power was evident. The Komsomol as one of the steps of a single ideological system was doomed.
The decline of the organization, as noted by the current Komsomol members, occurred already in the mid-eighties of the last century. The Komsomol was compared with a beautiful wrapper, inside of which it was empty.
The Komsomol member of the sunset era of socialism is not an exemplary young man with high moral standards. Everyone was invited to the organization. Therefore, few thought about the moral aspect.
The role of the Komsomol for youth
What did the Komsomol mean to youth? He performed several important functions:
- He carried out the socialization of youth. For 25 years after the closure of the Komsomol, our society has not created such an organization. Komsomol for youth was a real school, a transitional stage from youth to adulthood. The union helped young people find themselves in life, revealed their potential.
- Served as a social elevator. Komsomol - an organization that was a forge of senior personnel. Without it, it was impossible to join the only party in the country. And without this, in turn, you can forget about the leadership position.
Why expelled from the organization
There were few reasons for expelling young people from the organization, but they were serious:
- non-payment of membership fees;
- criminal record;
- drunkenness;
- parasitism;
- immoral lifestyle.
Such behavior was widely reported and condemned at party meetings, Komsomol organizations, and labor collectives. In social science, this concept is called "social control."
conclusions
We hope that we have covered this aspect. So, Komsomol members, who are they? Again, these are members of the Komsomol, the main youth organization in the socialist system of government. Membership in it could guarantee career advancement.