Persecuted swing dancers
and jazz musicians in
Northwest Germany, Czech Republic and Poland

The transnational project takes a comparative look at the Nazi persecution of the northwest German swing youth, the Czech Potápky and the swing and jazz music scene in occupied Poland and develops multi-perspective, interdisciplinary and participatory mediation formats.

In all three countries, the project raises public awareness of this particular form of resistance and the associated Nazi injustice. Through empathy-promoting and competence-oriented learning, it enables young people to make discrimination-sensitive judgments in the present.

It provides the basis for long-term interdisciplinary and transnational cooperation between the participating partner organizations and contributes to a common European memory space.

The target groups are pupils, students, people interested in music and history as well as the jazz and lindy hop scenes in the participating countries. The project theme is communicated via formats such as workshops (dance, music, content communication), interviews with descendants of persecutees and contemporary witnesses, readings, lectures, panel discussions, documentary films, exhibitions, concerts, dance events and historical swing walks.

As part of the project, two documentary films and an exhibition will be developed in a participatory manner with pupils and students. During a swing exchange weekend in Bremen, a joint dance performance will be developed with Lindy Hop dancers from the Czech Republic and Poland, which will be presented to the public in an unusual way at the various locations in 2025.

We provide information about the project and its activities via this project website and our social media channels.

From the project

Television report from DAS!
The project was a guest on NDR and took part in a report on swing youth during the Nazi era for the talk show DAS!
To the article
Swing Exchange Bremen 2024
The Swing Exchange Bremen 2024, which brought together dancers from all over Europe, summarized in a recap video!
To the article
Launch of the project
The launch of the project as part of the "How to make spring" festival!
To the article

Contact & Information

Our team

Hello, we are the German team behind the project: “NS Injustice ‘Degenerated Music'”.
We are based at the Bremer Bündnis für deutsch-tschechische Zusammenarbeit e.V. and work in Bremen.

Click on our photos for more information about us.

Natalie Reinsch
Natalie Reinsch | Project manager
Philipp Mangels
Philipp Mangels | Research assistant
Ramona Rücker
Ramona Rücker | Social Media Manager
Melika Yildizová
Melika Yildizová | Student Assistant

Support

We would like to thank the Federal Ministry of Finance and the EVZ Foundation for funding the project.

A project of the Bildungsagenda NS-Unrecht. Supported by:

Federal Ministry of Finance
Foundation Remembrance Responsibility Future

Visit
us on Instagram

Logo NS_injustice
A project of the
Education Agenda NS-Injustice.
Contact
Am Schwarzen Meer 119
28205 Bremen
Germany

Copyright © Bremer Bündnis 2024-2026 | All rights reserved.

Natalie Reinsch

Project manager

Hi, my name is Natalie Reinsch and I am the director of the project “Nazi Injustice ‘Degenerate Music'”. I am a historian and curator with a focus on the history of the 20th century. As I am passionate about swing dancing, I was aware of the persecution of swing youth by the Nazi regime, having seen the movie “Swing Kids”. I conceived the project to develop new educational programs about the history of National Socialism and the resistance to it. Dealing with the history of Lindy Hop and the persecution of swing dancers during National Socialism opens up the possibility of dealing with various topics such as racism, anti-Semitism and antiziganism, but also with resistance and the scope of the individual in a totalitarian state.

Philipp Mangels

Research assistant

Moin. I am Philipp Mangels, a cultural historian specializing in East Central Europe and part of the team of the Bremen Alliance for German-Czech Cooperation. During my studies, I was already heavily involved with subcultures and youth cultures and I see many links to this topic in the swing youth. What I find particularly fascinating is the self-determination of young people, who don’t let adults or regimes tell them how to live their lives. In our project, I am particularly looking forward to the educational work with young people who still have clear ideas about their own lifestyle today. I don’t just want to teach about history, I also want to learn a lot from the young people.

Ramona Rücker

Social Media Manager

Hello, my name is Ramona. Together with Melika, I’m responsible for the project’s social media. I studied public history and media studies with a focus on cultures of remembrance as well as media communication and coming to terms with National Socialism.
I have been dancing since my childhood, mainly hip hop, which is why I find the persecution of swing dancers all the more unimaginable and their commitment courageous and self-determined.
I am looking forward to this project because I love meeting different people and learning with and through them. I am also excited to share the story(s) of swing youth with you.

Melika Yildizová

Student assistant

Hi, I’m Melika Yildiz, a student at the University of Bremen.
I’m studying political science and religious studies and I’m interested in the history of Jewish life because I have Jewish roots. I have been working in the PR department of the ŠTETL FEST, an international Jewish festival in Brno, for three years. I am also a member (as a Czech) of the Bremen Alliance for German-Czech Cooperation.
The topic of the project “NS-Injustice degenerated music” is extremely interesting for me, as it provides a different perspective on the Nazi era. That’s why I’m very happy to be part of the team. Together with Ramona, I am responsible for the project’s social networks.

Natalie Reinsch

Project manager

Hi, my name is Natalie Reinsch and I am the director of the project “Nazi Injustice ‘Degenerate Music'”. I am a historian and curator with a focus on the history of the 20th century. As I am passionate about swing dancing, I was aware of the persecution of swing youth by the Nazi regime, having seen the movie “Swing Kids”. I conceived the project to develop new educational programs about the history of National Socialism and the resistance to it. Dealing with the history of Lindy Hop and the persecution of swing dancers during National Socialism opens up the possibility of dealing with various topics such as racism, anti-Semitism and antiziganism, but also with resistance and the scope of the individual in a totalitarian state.

Philipp Mangels

Research assistant

Moin. I am Philipp Mangels, a cultural historian specializing in East Central Europe and part of the team of the Bremen Alliance for German-Czech Cooperation. During my studies, I was already heavily involved with subcultures and youth cultures and I see many links to this topic in the swing youth. What I find particularly fascinating is the self-determination of young people, who don’t let adults or regimes tell them how to live their lives. In our project, I am particularly looking forward to the educational work with young people who still have clear ideas about their own lifestyle today. I don’t just want to teach about history, I also want to learn a lot from the young people.

Ramona Rücker

Social Media Manager

Hello, my name is Ramona. Together with Melika, I’m responsible for the project’s social media. I studied public history and media studies with a focus on cultures of remembrance as well as media communication and coming to terms with National Socialism.
I have been dancing since my childhood, mainly hip hop, which is why I find the persecution of swing dancers all the more unimaginable and their commitment courageous and self-determined.
I am looking forward to this project because I love meeting different people and learning with and through them. I am also excited to share the story(s) of swing youth with you.

Melika Yildizová

Student assistant

Hi, I’m Melika Yildiz, a student at the University of Bremen.
I’m studying political science and religious studies and I’m interested in the history of Jewish life because I have Jewish roots. I have been working in the PR department of the ŠTETL FEST, an international Jewish festival in Brno, for three years. I am also a member (as a Czech) of the Bremen Alliance for German-Czech Cooperation.
The topic of the project “NS-Injustice degenerated music” is extremely interesting for me, as it provides a different perspective on the Nazi era. That’s why I’m very happy to be part of the team. Together with Ramona, I am responsible for the project’s social networks.