Red Falcons was the name of various
socialist
Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...
children's organizations, popular in Europe and the United States which emerged during the First and Second World Wars. The first such group was founded in the early 20th century by Anton Tesarek, a socialist educator from
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, under the name "Rote Falken." The origin of the name is unclear; one possible explanation is that the Falcon is a bird of prey with no imperial links (the eagle was the symbol of the German empire, adopted later by the
Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...
.) It is red to symbolise socialism.
Red Falcons of America
Establishment
The Red Falcons of America was established by the
Socialist Party of America (SPA) in July 1932.
["The Red Falcons Appear," ''The New Leader,'' vol. 15, no. 11 (March 18, 1933), pg. 6.] The group was targeted at children who might otherwise be swept up by the
Boy Scouts
Boy Scouts may refer to:
* Boy Scout, a participant in the Boy Scout Movement.
* Scouting, also known as the Boy Scout Movement.
* An organisation in the Scouting Movement, although many of these organizations also have female members. There are ...
and
Girl Scouts movement, which was seen as a training organization for the military, or the
Sunday schools
A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West.
Su ...
, which were seen as a source of passivity and
fatalism
Fatalism is a family of related philosophical doctrines that stress the subjugation of all events or actions to fate or destiny, and is commonly associated with the consequent attitude of resignation in the face of future events which are tho ...
.
["Red Falcons: By This Sign You Will Know Them," ''The Challenge'' hicago vol. 1, no. 2 (May 1933), pg. 3.]
An age gap was seen in the American socialist youth movement, with the
Socialist Sunday Schools only accepting children up to the age of 10 while the
Young People's Socialist League (YPSL) began taking members only at the age of 14.
The new organization was seen as a means of filling this unserved age gap.
Boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 15 were eligible for membership in the Red Falcons.
The organization's stated purposes included training its young members "for service in the class struggle" and developing them for future membership in the YPSL.
Divisions
The American Red Falcons had two divisions, the "Young Falcons" (sometimes called "Red Sparks"), ages 8–11; and the "Red Falcons" proper, ages 11–15. These groups were led by older mentors recruited from the ranks of the Young People's Socialist League (YPSL).
[Julie Tatlock]
"Red Falcons: Children and the Socialist Party in Milwaukee,"
''Children in Urban America Project,'' Marquette University, www.mu.edu/
Structure
The Red Falcons were structured in a manner analogous to scouts and participating children wore distinct uniforms. The basic unit of the Red Falcons was known as a "flight."
["Parents Asked to Help Build the Falcons," ''Socialist Action,'' vol. 2, no. 7 (June 30, 1936), pg. 4.] An
auxiliary organization
An organization is a secondary body of church government within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) that is "established for moral, educational, and benevolent purposes." Prior to October 2019, the church's organizations w ...
of the SPA was established to organize and financially support these local flights, known as Friends of Workers Children (FWC).
These FWC "clubs" were intended to gather supportive parents, community trade unionists, teachers, and interested adults in order to "bolster up the work of the local Falcon flight" through advice, financial aid, and publicity.
The Red Falcons and Friends of Workers Children held a national convention in
Cleveland, Ohio in the spring of 1936 to better coordinate national activities.
It was at this time that the American organization joined the International Falcon Movement, headquartered in Europe and associated with the
Socialist International
The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism. It consists mostly of socialist and labour-oriented political parties and organisations ...
.
["Our History: 90 years of Falcon history,"]
International Falcon Movement – Socialist Education International, www.ifm-sei.org/ National Secretary of the Red Falcons and Friends of Workers Children in that year was
Harry Fleischman
Harry may refer to:
TV shows
* ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin
* ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons
* ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...
.
The group maintained a headquarters office in the
Moxley Building
Moxley may refer to:
* Moxley, Georgia, United States
* Moxley, West Midlands, England
* Moxley & Co., a corporate nominee for the issuance of ADRs
* Mount Moxley, a peak in the Royal Society Range, Antarctica
People with the surname
* William ...
in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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.
The Red Falcons issued a monthly publication for its members called ''The Falcon Call.''
In addition, some of the local Falcon flights issued their own
mimeograph
A mimeograph machine (often abbreviated to mimeo, sometimes called a stencil duplicator) is a low-cost duplicating machine that works by forcing ink through a stencil onto paper. The process is called mimeography, and a copy made by the proc ...
ed bulletins.
["The Red Falcons of America," ''The Challenge'' hicago vol. 1, no. 5 (Aug.-Sept. 1933), pg. 7.]
The Falcon organization attempted to emulate the Scouting movement by stressing outdoor and athletic activities rather than structured lectures.
Membership size
About seven months after the launch of the Red Falcons in America about 25 Red Falcon flights had been organized with an estimated total membership of between 250 and 350.
The organization apparently grew considerably during its first year, with a membership of "around 900" divided into 45 local groups claimed in the summer of 1933.
International Falcon Movement
The various national Red Falcon organizations are generally members of the
.
See also
*
Pioneer movement
A pioneer movement is an organization for children operated by a communist party. Typically children enter into the organization in elementary school and continue until adolescence. The adolescents then typically join the Young Communist League ...
*
Young People's Socialist League
Footnotes
{{reflist, 2
External links
Website of International Falcon Movement – Socialist Education International www.ifm-sei.org/
International Falcon Movement – Socialist Educational International
Youth wings of social democratic parties