Composer Vladimir Dashkevich, the author of music for such films beloved by the mass audience as Bumbarash, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, Heart of a Dog and many others, had his father repressed, so the student should not even dream of Komsomol. Dashkevich, however, freely entered the institute, and did not think about membership in the Komsomol during his studies. However, later, while working as a foreman at the factory, Dashkevich was chosen ... to the Komsomol bureau. It was embarrassing for the future composer to admit that he was not a member of the Komsomol, and he kept silent. For some time, before leaving for the Gnessin Institute, Vladimir Sergeevich even headed the factory brigade of communist labor. President of the Association of Stuntmen of Russia, producer, actor and film director Alexander Inshakov was only a pioneer. However, today Alexander Ivanovich has a generally good opinion of the Komsomol, and regrets that in modern Russia there is no such an authoritative youth organization engaged in the mass socialization of the younger generation. St. Petersburg journalist, director and public figure Alexander Nevzorov not only did not get into the ranks of the Komsomol, but, according to his own statement, was expelled from the pioneers for picking a pioneer tie in his nose. Singer Lyudmila Senchina did not have time to join the Komsomol - her parents traveled a lot around the country. Therefore, the Honored Artist of Russia, unlike, for example, Lev Leshchenko and Valentina Tolkunova, did not receive any Komsomol awards.

1949 Museum of Ukrainian Fine Arts. Ukraine. Kyiv.

Sergei Alekseevich Grigoriev was one of the prominent Soviet genre painters. He stood on a par with such outstanding masters of the Soviet everyday genre as B.V. Ioganson, A.A. Plastov, F.P. Reshetnikov, T.N. Yablonskaya.

The artist gained wide popularity at the turn of the 40s - 50s. A distinctive style of Grigoriev's works is the pictorial accuracy of the reflection of events and scenes of everyday life. His canvases are restrained in terms of color solutions.

Picture Admission to the Komsomol demonstrates the ability of S. A. Grigoriev to generalize life observations, highlight the essential aspects of events. It is necessary to note the expressive nature of the work. Each character has its own face, its own psychological portrait. The red tablecloth, the bust of the "leader of the peoples" (which will disappear in the later edition of the canvas after the death of Stalin) in the interior of the picture create a solemn atmosphere. Grigoriev seeks to emphasize the pathos of the current event.

The viewer does not see the face of the young heroine of the picture. Thus, the artist shows a certain generalized image of the advanced Soviet youth: "It is a great honor to be a member of the Lenin Komsomol, it is a great honor to be in the forefront of the fighters for communism. But this is also a great responsibility" (Memo to a member of the Komsomol).

Picture Admission to the Komsomol became an exemplary work of socialist realism. The canvas became widely known thanks to reproductions in school textbooks and on postage stamps.

In 1950, Sergei Alekseevich Grigoriev was awarded the title of laureate of the Stalin Prize of the second degree for paintings Admission to the Komsomol And

The Komsomol organization, which celebrates its 90th anniversary on October 29, ended its existence almost 20 years ago, but its anniversary is celebrated on a grand scale throughout the country.

The All-Union Leninist Communist Youth Union (VLKSM) is a youth socio-political organization created at the 1st All-Russian Congress of Unions of Workers' and Peasants' Youth on October 29 - November 4, 1918.

The congress united the disparate youth unions into an all-Russian organization with a single center, working under the leadership of the Russian Communist Party. The congress adopted the basic principles of the program and the charter of the Russian Communist Youth Union (RKSM). The theses approved by the congress stated: "The goal of the Union is to spread the ideas of communism and to involve the youth of workers and peasants in the active construction of Soviet Russia."

In July 1924, the RKSM was named after V.I. Lenin and it became known as the Russian Leninist Communist Youth Union (RLKSM). In connection with the formation of the USSR (1922), the Komsomol in March 1926 was renamed the All-Union Leninist Communist Youth Union (VLKSM).

From the Charter of the Komsomol: “The Komsomol is an amateur public organization that unites in its ranks the broad masses of progressive Soviet youth. The Komsomol is an active assistant and reserve of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Faithful to Lenin's precepts, the Komsomol helps the party educate the youth in the spirit of communism, involve them in the practical construction of a new society, prepare a generation of comprehensively developed people who will live, work and manage public affairs under communism. The VLKSM works under the leadership of the Communist Party, is an active conductor of party directives in all areas of communist construction.

According to the Charter of the Komsomol, young men and girls aged 14 to 28 were accepted into the Komsomol. The primary organizations of the Komsomol were created at enterprises, collective farms, state farms, educational institutions, institutions, units of the Soviet Army and Navy. The supreme governing body of the Komsomol is the All-Union Congress; All work of the Union between congresses was directed by the Central Committee of the All-Union Leninist Young Communist League, which elects the Bureau and the Secretariat.

The history of the Komsomol was inextricably linked with the history of the USSR. Komsomol members were active participants in the Civil War of 1918-1920 in the ranks of the Red Army. In commemoration of military merits, the Komsomol was awarded the Order of the Red Banner in 1928.

For his initiative in the socialist competition, the Komsomol was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor in 1931.

For outstanding services to the Motherland at the front and in the rear during the Great Patriotic War, 3.5 thousand Komsomol members were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 3.5 million Komsomol members were awarded orders and medals; Komsomol in 1945 was awarded the Order of Lenin.

For the work that the Komsomol invested in the restoration of the national economy destroyed by the Nazi invaders, the Komsomol in 1948 was awarded the second Order of Lenin.

For active participation in the development of virgin and fallow lands of the Komsomol in 1956 he was awarded the third Order of Lenin.

In 1968, in connection with the 50th anniversary of the Lenin Komsomol, the Komsomol was awarded the Order of the October Revolution.

In the entire history of the Komsomol, more than 200 million people have passed through its ranks.

In September 1991, the 22nd Extraordinary Congress of the Komsomol considered the political role of the Komsomol as a federation of communist youth unions to be exhausted and announced the self-dissolution of the organization.

The material was prepared on the basis of information from open sources

Pioneers

In the autumn of 1918, the children's organization of young communists (YUK) was created, but a year later it was disbanded. In November 1921, a decision was made to create an all-Russian children's organization. Children's groups operated in Moscow for several months, during the experiment, pioneer symbols and attributes were developed, the name of the new organization was adopted - detachments of young pioneers named after Spartak. On May 7, 1922, the first pioneer bonfire was held in the Sokolnichesky forest in Moscow.

In the Soviet Union, the Day of the All-Union Pioneer Organization named after V. I. Lenin, or, to put it more simply, Pioneer Day, was officially celebrated on May 19. It was on this day in 1922 that the 2nd All-Russian Conference of the Komsomol decided to create pioneer detachments everywhere. The social hierarchy: October - pioneer - Komsomol member, was aimed at creating an internal ideological core in Soviet children and adolescents, the desire to grow and improve. The pioneer organization taught children how to live in a socialist society, how to coexist with their peers. Now, many citizens see shortcomings in this approach to educating young people, they say, ideological clouding of the brain, which made puppets out of people. Even so, at that time the level of drug addiction and crime among young people was ultra-low, compared to our time. After the collapse of the USSR, Pioneer Day ceased to be an official holiday. Today Pioneer Day is unofficially celebrated by some children's organizations and companies involved in the organization of children's leisure. And there will always be people who remember the young pioneer years with pleasure.

Which of the Soviet pioneers does not remember the excitement with which he was preparing to join the ranks of a mass socio-political organization? How were scarlet ties tied to the sound of horns and drums? How, for the first time in our lives, did we solemnly swear allegiance to the cause of Lenin and the Communist Party? The Soviet country spared nothing for the young. Beautiful Palaces of Pioneers and children's camps were built. The very activity of children's communist organizations in the USSR and in other socialist countries was of such a serious scale that it even surpassed in significance its "bourgeois" prototype and analogue - the scout movement. The Pioneer movement differed from it in significant aspects: the system was of an all-encompassing state character and set as its goal the ideological education of children as citizens completely devoted to the Communist Party and the state. At the same time, it should be noted that, as the movement evolved, the role of the heritage of scouting in it fell (which can be clearly seen in the evolution of the pioneer camp from the type of sports and tourist tent camp to the type of a sanatorium complex). Among particular differences, one can point out the absence of separate organizations for boys and girls. Until 1924, the pioneer organization bore the name of Spartak, and after the death of Lenin received his name.

"Be ready!"

"Always ready!"

Pioneer Oath
I, I.F., joining the ranks of the All-Union Pioneer Organization, in the face of my comrades, solemnly swear: to love my Motherland passionately; to live, study and fight as the great Lenin bequeathed, as the Communist Party teaches; always comply with the laws of the pioneers of the Soviet Union."
"Be ready!"
"Always ready!"

The Laws of Young Pioneers - a set of basic rules for the life and work of a member of the All-Union Pioneer Organization. V. I. Lenin. The goals and tasks of the children's communist organization, the basic principles of communist morality, and the moral and ethical norms of behavior of young pioneers are set out in a figurative and understandable form for children.

For the first time, the Laws of Young Pioneers, developed by the commission of the Central Committee of the RKSM with the participation of N. K. Krupskaya, were approved by the 5th Congress of the RKSM in October 1922. In the Laws of Young Pioneers, it was singled out as one of the main laws - "I will strive always, wherever possible, to obtain knowledge in order to use it for the benefit of the working people."

The changes in the conditions of activity of the pioneer organization that took place during the years of socialist construction, the deepening of the content and the improvement of the forms and methods of its work were reflected in the new text of the Laws of the Young Pioneers, approved in 1957 by the 8th Plenum of the Central Committee of the All-Union Leninist Young Communist League.

The laws of the pioneers of the Soviet Union

The pioneer is devoted to the motherland, the party, communism.
Pioneer is preparing to become a member of the Komsomol.
The pioneer looks up to the heroes of struggle and labor.
Pioneer honors the memory of the dead fighters and is preparing to become a defender of the Fatherland.
Pioneer is the best in studies, work and sports.
The pioneer is disciplined.
The Pioneer is an honest and faithful comrade, always boldly standing up for the truth.
Pioneer - comrade and counselor of the October.
Pioneer is a friend to pioneers and children of working people of all countries.
Pioneer is honest and truthful. His word is like granite.

Pioneer habits.

Pioneer does not lie in bed in the morning, but rises immediately, like a roly-poly.
Pioneers make beds with their own hands, not with the hands of others.
Pioneers wash themselves thoroughly, not forgetting to wash their necks and ears, brush their teeth and remember that teeth are the friends of the stomach.
Pioneers are accurate and accurate.
Pioneers stand and sit straight, not hunched over.
Pioneers are not afraid to offer their services to people. Pioneers do not smoke; a smoking pioneer is no longer a pioneer.
Pioneers don't keep their hands in their pockets; one who keeps his hands in his pockets is not always ready.
Pioneers protect useful animals.
Pioneers always remember their customs and laws.

Anthem of the Pioneer.


We are Pioneers - children of workers!
The era of light years is approaching,

Joyful step with a cheerful song
We stand for the Komsomol
The era of light years is approaching,
The cry of the pioneers - always be ready!

We raise the red banner
Children of the workers - boldly follow us!
The era of light years is approaching,
The cry of the pioneers - always be ready!

Raise fires, blue nights,
We are Pioneers - children of workers!
The era of light years is approaching,
The cry of the pioneers - always be ready!

Komsomol

The Komsomol is an organization that for decades served as a school of life for many generations of Soviet people; an organization that has made a huge contribution to the heroic history of our Motherland; an organization that today and will continue to unite young people who are not indifferent to the fate of the country and people, in whose hearts the flame of the struggle for justice burns, so that a working man can walk with his head held high on the land forever liberated from exploitation, poverty and lawlessness.

There are no other examples in history of such a powerful youth movement as the Lenin Komsomol was. In peacetime and during wars, shoulder to shoulder with the communists, Komsomol members were the first to go into battle, into the virgin lands, to construction sites, into space and led the youth. At each historical milestone, the Komsomol brought forth thousands and thousands of young heroes from its ranks, who glorified it with their exploits. Their example of selfless service to the Motherland, the people will always be in the memory of present and future generations.

And it all began in the distant revolutionary year of 1917 with the creation of socialist unions of working, peasant and student youth. But they were all divided. Therefore, already in 1918, on October 29, the First All-Russian Congress of Unions of Worker and Peasant Youth began its work, which brought together 195 delegates from all over Russia and united disparate youth organizations into a single monolithic Russian Communist Youth Union. Day October 29 and became the birthday of the Komsomol.

After the congress in all regions or, as they were then called, provinces, general meetings of the unions of workers' and peasants' youth were held.

The chronicle of the heroic deeds of the Komsomol is endless. Six orders burn brightly on his banner. This is a nationwide recognition of the merits of the Komsomol to the Motherland. Everyone knew the Komsomol heroes: Lyubov Shevtsova, Oleg Koshevoy, Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya, Alexander Matrosov, Liza Chaikina... Eternal glory and memory to them!

The Komsomol is an organization that shapes a person, his personal qualities. Here the life views of young people were affirmed, here the first experience of social work was acquired. The Komsomol is the foundation that formed the Soviet man. Of course, there was everything in the Komsomol. It was good, it was not so good. There were bureaucratic moments that irritated young people, but these moments were criticized. However, fundamentally, it was a wonderful public organization. The Komsomol formed the worldview in certain coordinates - the Soviet worldview. Komsomol is youth. Komsomol is the most wonderful memories! The Komsomol is energy, purposefulness, the desire to turn this world around and make it better!

1918-1928
The RKSM was an active participant in the Civil War; he spent three all-Russian mobilization to the front. According to incomplete data, the Komsomol sent more than 75,000 members to the Red Army between 1918 and 20. In total, up to 200 thousand Komsomol members participated in the struggle of the Soviet people against the interventionists, White Guards and bandits. They fought heroically against the enemies: 19-year-old commander of the 30th division Albert Lapin, future writers Nikolai Ostrovsky and Arkady Gaidar, armored train commander Lyudmila Makiyevskaya, commissars Alexander Kondratiev and Anatoly Popov, leader of the Far Eastern Komsomol members Vitaly Banevur and many others. The Komsomol fought selflessly behind enemy lines. In Odessa, the Komsomol underground numbered over 300 people, in Riga - about 200 people, underground Komsomol groups operated in Ekaterinodar (Krasnodar), Simferopol, Rostov-on-Don, Nikolaev, Tbilisi, etc. Many Komsomol members died a heroic death in battles to defend the conquests October revolution. In severe trials, the Komsomol got stronger and grew. Despite the huge sacrifices that he made on the fronts, his numbers increased 20 times: in October 1918 - 22,100, in October 1920 - 482,000. In commemoration of military merits on the fronts of the Civil War in the period 1919-20 against the troops of the White Guard generals Kolchak , Denikin, Yudenich, the White Poles and Wrangel, the Komsomol in 1928 was awarded the Order of the Red Banner by a decree of the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR.

1929-1941
After the Civil War, the Komsomol was faced with the task of preparing the worker and peasant youth for peaceful, creative activity. In October 1920, the 3rd Congress of the RKSM was held. Lenin's speech at the congress on October 2, 1920, "The Tasks of Youth Unions," was the guide for the activities of the Komsomol. Lenin saw the main goal of the Komsomol as "... to help the party build communism and help the entire young generation create a communist society." The Komsomol directed all its efforts to the restoration of the national economy destroyed during the war. Boys and girls participated in the restoration of factories in Petrograd, Moscow, the Urals, mines and factories in the Donbass, and the country's railways. In September 1920, the first All-Russian Youth Subbotnik was held. Komsomol members assisted the Soviet government in the fight against speculation, sabotage, and banditry. In 1929, the Komsomol carried out the first mobilization of youth for the new buildings of the 1st Five-Year Plan. More than 200,000 Komsomol members came to the construction sites with vouchers from their organizations. With the active participation of the Komsomol, the Dneproges, the Moscow and Gorky Automobile Plants, the Stalingrad Tractor Plant, the Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works, the Turksib railway, etc. were built. development of the national economy ... "The Komsomol was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor.

1941-1945
The Great Patriotic War of 1941–45 was a severe test for the entire Soviet people and its younger generation. The Komsomol, all Soviet youth, at the call of the Communist Party, came out to fight the Nazi invaders. Already in the first year of the war, about 2 million Komsomol members joined the ranks of the Red Army. Unprecedented courage, bravery, heroism were shown by Komsomol members, young men and women, defending Brest, Liepaja, Odessa, Sevastopol, Smolensk, Moscow, Leningrad, Kyiv, Stalingrad, other cities and regions of the country from the enemy. Only the Komsomol organization of Moscow and the region in the first 5 months of the war sent over 300 thousand people to the front; 90% of the members of the Leningrad organization of the Komsomol fought against the Nazi invaders on the outskirts of the city of Lenin. Fearlessly, young partisans and underground fighters of Belarus, the occupied regions of the RSFSR, Ukraine, and the Baltic states acted behind enemy lines. Partisan detachments consisted of 30-45% Komsomol members. Unparalleled heroism was shown by members of the underground Komsomol organizations—Young Guard (Krasnodon), Partisan Iskra (Nikolaev Oblast), Lyudinovskoye underground Komsomol group, and others. Between 1941 and 1945, about 12 million young men and women joined the VLKSM. Of the 7 thousand Heroes of the Soviet Union under the age of 30, 3.5 thousand are Komsomol members (of which 60 are twice Heroes of the Soviet Union), 3.5 million Komsomol members were awarded orders and medals. The names of members of the Komsomol who fell in the fight against the fascist invaders: Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya, Alexander Chekalin, Lisa Chaikina, Alexander Matrosov, Viktor Talalikhin and many others - have become a symbol of courage, courage, heroism. For outstanding services to the Motherland during the Great Patriotic War and for the great work in educating Soviet youth in the spirit of selfless devotion to the socialist Fatherland of the Komsomol, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on June 14, 1945, he was awarded the Order of Lenin.

1945-1948
The Young Communist League has invested a great deal of work in the restoration of the national economy destroyed by the Nazi invaders, in the construction of Minsk, Smolensk, Stalingrad, in the restoration of Leningrad, Kharkov, Kursk, Voronezh, Sevastopol, Odessa, Rostov-on-Don and many other cities, in the revival of industry and cities of Donbass, Dneproges, collective farms, state farms and MTS. In 1948 alone, the youth built and put into operation 6,200 rural power stations. The Komsomol showed great concern for the placement of children and adolescents left without parents, for the expansion of the network of orphanages and vocational schools, and the construction of schools. In 1948, the Komsomol celebrated its thirtieth anniversary. On October 28, 1948, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR awarded the Komsomol with the second Order of Lenin.

1948-1956
The Komsomol took an active part in the implementation of the measures worked out by the Party for the advancement of agriculture. Thousands of young specialists, workers and employees, graduates of secondary schools were sent to state farms, collective farms, MTS. In 1954–55, more than 350,000 young people left on Komsomol vouchers to develop the virgin lands of Kazakhstan, Altai, and Siberia. Their work was a real feat. By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR for active participation in communist construction and especially for the development of virgin lands of the Komsomol on November 5, 1956, he was awarded the third Order of Lenin.

1956-1991
The scale of activity of the Komsomol in solving national economic problems has significantly expanded, in particular in the development of the wealth of Siberia, the Far East and the Far North, in the redistribution of the country's labor resources. More than 70,000 All-Union detachments have been formed, and more than 500,000 young people have been sent to new buildings. With the most active participation of young people, about 1,500 important facilities were built and put into operation, including the largest in the world - the Bratsk hydroelectric power station, the Beloyarsk nuclear power plant, the Baikal-Amur Mainline named after Lenin Komsomol, the Druzhba oil pipeline, etc. The Komsomol sponsored 100 shock construction projects , including over the development of the unique oil and gas resources of the Tyumen and Tomsk regions. Student construction teams have become a tradition of university Komsomol members. Millions of students took part in labor semesters. At the initiative of the Komsomol, the construction of youth residential complexes became widespread. Youth residential complexes have been built in 156 cities and regions of the country. The Komsomol is the initiator of all-Union campaigns to places of revolutionary, military and labor glory, in which millions of young men and women take part. The children's and youth competitions "Golden Puck", "Leather Ball", "Olympic Spring", "Neptune" and the all-Union military sports game "Zarnitsa" held by the Central Committee of the Komsomol have become truly massive. Komsomol and Soviet youth organizations cooperated with international, regional, national and local youth associations in 129 countries of the world. On July 5, 1956, the Committee of Youth Organizations of the USSR was established; on May 10, 1958, the Sputnik International Youth Tourism Bureau was established. In four years, more than 22 million young people traveled around the country through Sputnik, and 1.7 million people went abroad. In 1968, for the outstanding services and great contribution of Komsomol members to the formation and strengthening of Soviet power, courage and heroism shown in battles with the enemies of the socialist Fatherland, active participation in the construction of socialism, for fruitful work in the political education of the younger generations in connection with the 50th anniversary of the Komsomol, he was awarded Order of the October Revolution.

After the victory of the October Revolution, red children's organizations, groups and associations arose in various cities. On May 19, 1922, the 2nd All-Russian Conference of the Komsomol decided to create pioneer detachments everywhere.

In the first years of Soviet power, the pioneers helped homeless children and fought illiteracy, collected books and set up libraries, engaged in technical circles, cared for animals, went on geological trips, on expeditions to study nature, and collected medicinal plants. Pioneers worked on collective farms, in the fields, guarded crops and collective farm property, wrote letters to newspapers or to the relevant authorities about violations that they noticed around.

AiF.ru recalls how in Soviet times they accepted Octoberites, pioneers and who could become a Komsomol member.

From what class did they take in October?

Schoolchildren of grades 1-3 became Octobers, united on a voluntary basis in groups with the pioneer team of the school. The groups were led by leaders from among the pioneers or Komsomol members of the school. In these groups, children were preparing to join the All-Union Pioneer Organization named after V. I. Lenin.

When joining the ranks of the Octobrists, children were given a badge - a five-pointed star with a child's portrait of Lenin. The symbol was a red October flag.

In honor of the victory of the October Revolution, since 1923, schoolchildren were called "Octobers". The Octobers were united into stars (an analogue of the pioneer link) - on October 5, and also the "sickle" and "hammer" - the leader of the stars and his assistant. In an asterisk, an October child could take one of the positions - a commander, a florist, a nurse, a librarian or an athlete.

In the last decades of Soviet power, the Oktyabrata accepted all elementary school students in a row, usually already in the first grade.

Who was accepted as a pioneer?

Schoolchildren aged 9 to 14 were accepted into the pioneer organization. Formally, admission was carried out on a voluntary basis. The selection of candidates was carried out by open voting at a meeting of a pioneer detachment (usually corresponding to the class) or at the highest - at the school level - pioneer body: at the Council of the Squad.

A student joining a pioneer organization on the pioneer line made a Solemn Promise of a Pioneer of the Soviet Union (the text of the promise could be seen on the back cover of school notebooks in the 1980s). A communist, Komsomol member, or senior pioneer presented the newcomer with a red pioneer tie and a pioneer badge. The pioneer tie was a symbol of belonging to a pioneer organization, a particle of its banner. The three ends of the tie symbolized the unbreakable bond of three generations: communists, Komsomol members and pioneers; the pioneer was obliged to take care of his tie and take care of it.

The greeting of the pioneers was a salute - a hand raised just above the head showed that the pioneer puts public interests above personal ones. "Be ready!" - the leader called on the pioneers and heard in response: “Always ready!”

As a rule, pioneers were accepted in a solemn atmosphere during communist holidays in memorable historical and revolutionary places, for example, on April 22 near the monument to V.I. Lenin.

The following punishments were applied to members of the organization who violated the laws of the pioneers of the Soviet Union: discussion at the assembly of the link, detachment, council of the squad; comment; exception warning; as a last resort - exclusion from the pioneer organization. They could be expelled from the pioneers for unsatisfactory behavior and hooliganism.

Collecting scrap metal and waste paper and other types of socially useful work, helping elementary school students, participating in military sports "Zarnitsy", classes in circles and, of course, excellent studies - that's what pioneer everyday life was filled with.

How did you become members of the Komsomol?

They became Komsomol members from the age of 14. Reception was carried out individually. To apply, you needed a recommendation from a communist or two Komsomol members with at least 10 months of experience. After that, the application could be accepted for consideration in the school Komsomol organization, or they could not be accepted if they did not consider the submitter a worthy figure.

Those whose application was accepted were scheduled an interview with the Komsomol committee (council of Komsomol organizers) and a representative of the district committee. To pass the interview, it was necessary to learn the charter of the Komsomol, the names of the key leaders of the Komsomol and the party, important dates, and most importantly, answer the question: “Why do you want to become a Komsomol member?”.

Any of the members of the committee could ask a tricky question at the trial stage. If the candidate successfully passed the interview, he was handed a Komsomol card, which documented the payment of contributions. Pupils and students paid 2 kopecks. per month, working - one percent of the salary.

They could be expelled from the Komsomol for sloppiness, attending church, for non-payment of membership dues, for family troubles. Exclusion from the organization threatened the lack of a good prospect and a career in the future. The former Komsomol member did not have the right to join the party, go abroad, in some cases he was threatened with dismissal from his job.