The White Rose Resistance: The Anti-Nazi Freedom Fighters Within The Nazi Party

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The White Rose Resistance was made up of young Germans

The White Rose Resistance movement was only active from 1942–1943, but in that time, the group of young Germans fought back against the Nazis with their words. Refusing to be silent, they spread their convictions through secret meetings and more than 15,000 pamphlets, leaving a lasting mark on German society.

Source: DenkStätte Weiße Rose

During World War II, the Nazi party did everything they could to essentially enlist the entire country of Germany into their fight. Those who were too old or feeble to join the military were told to keep their ears to the ground for dissent, and young people were enlisted in the Hitler Youth. The core members of the White Rose (Hans Scholl and his sister, Sophie, and their friends Christoph Probst, Alexander Schmorell, and Willi Graf) were members of Hitler Youth and the Union of German Girls, both organizations that spread Nazi ideologies to young people. As these young people came to understand what the Nazis were actually doing, however, they grew disillusioned and sought a way to counteract all the evil that the group was doing.