tricably linked to that of European federalism since the drafting and dissemination , at the beginning of the 1940s , of the Ventotene Manifesto .
For the realization of the European federation Ursula fought all her life , even in those times of crisis , economic or political , in which the idea of a united Europe has not been particularly popular . The commitment is up to the end of her days : when Ursula Hirschmann died at the age of seventy-eight , in 1991 , she held the position of president of the Roman section of the European Federalist Movement .
So much conviction in a project can only be explained by starting from the beginnings of Ursula Hirschmann ’ s political commitment . It is in Berlin in the 1930s , between the Weimar Republic and the rise of National Socialism , that little more than a teenager , Ursula approaches politics by enrolling with her brother Otto Albert at Sozialistische Arbeiter-Jugend , the organization youth of the German Social Democratic Party ( SPD ). The weakening of democracy , the now evident social contrasts , the spread of violence , the obstinate blindness and political inactivity of the liberal bourgeoisie also demand action from the young . Ursula and Otto do not hesitate . The Socialist Youth is , above all , a discussion group but it still gives the young woman the opportunity to witness firsthand the internal political debate of the SPD - and of the left in general - at a time when left-wing parties , displaced by events , are looking for establishing a course of action ( which will later be “ inaction ”) to counter National Socialism . In June 1933 , the arrest of a friend and comrade in struggle of the Hirschmann brothers by the Gestapo and the discovery of a notebook with the names of the members of the Social Democratic youth gave Ursula the idea of leaving Germany for a while . Destination Paris . In her escape , which took place in July , Ursula is accompanied by a young Communist friend
94