Background: The GDR appointed agitators to spread its
messages in factories, offices, etc. Often, they maintained Wandzeitungen,
essentially bulletin boards or “wall newspapers” that
contained propaganda, encouragement and news. To provide them
with material, the Socialist Unity Party (SED) provided material
they could use. This is from a 1989 edition, one of the last
published. It was tabloid size. Agitators could cut out what
was useful and post it along with material specific to their
office or facto
East German
Bulletin Board Material
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Wall Newspaper Material |
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Our Day of Honor. 40 Years of the German Democratic Republic. |
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October 7. Our National Holiday [October
7 was the anniversary of the GDR’s founding] |
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The top slogan reads” “Looking forward to the XII.
Party Congress, we meet the challenges of today.” The middle
is the logo of the SED. The bottom is the common party slogan
“Where a party member is, there, too, is the party.” |
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Marx, Engels, and Lenin |
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Karl Liebknecht, Rosa Luxemburg and Ernst Thälmann.
Liebknecht and Luxemburg were “martyrs” of the socialist
movement, killed in 1919. Thälman was the leader of the
Communist Party of Germany during the Weimar Republic. He was
killed by the Nazis shortly before the end of the war. |
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The top says “Our Activists.” It could be put alongside
pictures of good workers. The FDGB was the “Free German
Trade Union.” The medal was given to workers who met their
goals. On the back, it said “Work, learn, and live socialistically.” |
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May 1: The fighting holiday of the working class. |
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Best wishes to our women! |
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March 1: Day of the National People’s Army |
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My workplace: My battleground for peace. |
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Various organizational logos. The upper right is the symbol for
the Society for German-Soviet Friendship. Below it is the DTSB, the
sports organization of the GDR. The DFD was the women’s organization.
The KDT was the organization for engineers and technical workers.
“Schlüssel Technologie” is “key technologies,”
part of the GDR’s attempt to develop its technical base. |
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The bottom logo is for the Society for Sports and Technology,
which provided military training for youth 14 and older.. |
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The top is the logo for the “World Federation of Democratic
Youth.”
The bottom is the logo for the “Free German Youth,”
to which nearly all young people belonged.
|
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Upper logo: Vereineinigung der gegegenseitigen Bauernhilfe,
a farmers’ organization.
To the bottom left is the logo for the Thälmann Pioneers,
the group for children in the 4th to 7th grades.
The MMM was something of an exhibition fair for young people
to display their accomplishments.
|
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November 7, 1917: The dawn of a new era |
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Their program lives in our deeds. |
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The “Mach mit” movement was a “voluntary compulsory”
activity that got people to clean up their neighborhoods, etc.
These four graphics urge people to clean up, plant, repair and
renovate. |
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Upper left: “I save energy.”
Upper right: “Join in: Beautify our cities and communities.”
Lower left: SERO was the GDR’s campaign to recycle.
The lower right is another “Mach mit” logo encouraging
maintenance.
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Go to the East German
Propaganda Page.
Go to
the German Propaganda Archive Home Page.
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