Remembering Queer Men Lost During the Holocaust
by James Admans
January 27, 2023
Pink triangle (Rosa Winkel in German) memorial for gay men killed at Buchenwald.
Depending on who you ask, gay and queer men may not be intentionally remembered on Holocaust Remembrance Day. They were forced to keep their experiences tucked away or risk further harm, as being gay was still illegal even after WWII ended. While many of these victims never came forward, it’s vital that we still find a way to remember them.
Many groups were targeted during the Holocaust.
The Nazis went after all groups who threatened what they believed to be the pure Aryan race. Many of those killed during this time were selected based on race More than six million Jewish people were murdered. Many Roma and Sinti people lost their lives as well.
After some time passed, five million people from other groups fell victim to Nazi hatred, including Soviet citizens, Soviet prisoners of war, and Poles. The LGBTQ+ community, those with mental or physical disabilities, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and people who held opposing political stances were also targeted for threatening the idyllic image Nazis had of a perfect race.
How were things for the LGBTQ+ community in Germany before the Holocaust?
Before the Holocaust began in 1933, Paragraph 175, a statute criminalizing sexual relations between men, already existed. While it was around, it wasn’t actually enforced often. In 1929, there was even a movement working to repeal this law. It is difficult to say what would have happened if the Nazis didn’t come after this community.
LGBTQ+ people in Germany had an easier time being openly queer in the 1920s and 1930s. There were many gay bars and cafes, and LGBTQ+ inclusion was not rare in music, movies, and books. There were protests against harmful depictions of the LGBTQ+ community in the media, and many medical professionals understood being gay wasn’t a choice.
While many frowned upon its creation, Magnus Hirschfeld opened the “Institute for Sexual Science” in 1919. This was the first institute based on the idea of sexual science to be created. They conducted research and offered sexual counseling and public sex education.
In many ways, Germany was ahead of their time with the acceptance of this community. That was until 1933 when the Nazis came after LGBTQ+ people.
They quickly burned down the Institute for Sexual Science. Kurt Hiller, the head of the Scientific-Humanitarian Committee, was sent to a concentration camp and eventually released. Things would continue to worsen from there.
Homosexuality was not approached lightly once the Holocaust began.
Rather than simply frowning upon gay and other LGBTQ+ people for being themselves, the Nazis took this much further. Hitler banned any existing gay and lesbian organizations. They began to apply Paragraph 175 more seriously and banned homosexual activity. They revised this portion of the Criminal Code, making it harsher.
At the beginning of the Holocaust, Jewish homosexuals were targeted more often than gay people that fell under other groups. It didn’t take long for this to change.
According to Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, a plan was presented by Willhelm Frick for the castration of homosexuals, and Heinrich Himmler was behind the plan to exterminate them. Nazi newspapers also encouraged homosexual acts to be met with the death penalty.
Homosexuals were forced to step down from their positions and to appear in court. Depending on the verdict they would then be sent to concentration camps where they’d be murdered if they tried to escape.
Lesbians and other members of the LGBTQ+ community were often able to avoid harm. This had a lot to do with Paragraph 175 mentioning gay relations specifically. Some women were sent to concentration camps based on their sexuality, but not much is known about these instances.
Homosexuals were labeled with an A, and eventually a pink triangle. According to Nazism's Pink Hell by Robert Biedron, the intention wasn’t to kill them, at least in the beginning, but rather to “reeducate” them. Somewhere between 5,000 and 15,000 of gay men died anyway. They were given the most unfavorable assignments and were not allowed to talk to prisoners beyond their block.
Homosexuals have been left out when remembering victims of the Holocaust.
Homosexuality was still illegal after the war. This led an entire group to be forgotten as victims. Most people were afraid, and this fear held them back from speaking up about their experiences during the Holocaust. They couldn’t talk about what happened in the concentration camps or what they’d been through over the long years without being concerned for their safety.
Decades later, in the 1970s, these victims began to speak out. Josef Kohout and Pierre Seel released their experiences, but their stories didn’t receive as much attention as they deserved.
During this time we remember all of the victims of the Holocaust. Tens of thousands of LGBTQ+ people were harmed, and 5,000 to 15,000 were killed. Few specific people can be recognized because this group was silenced for so long. One is Gad Beck, a gay man who survived the Holocaust. Before being sent to a Jewish transit camp, he used his connections to help other homosexuals find hiding places.
Although we may not know their names, there are likely many stories just like his. While we can’t recognize them entirely, as their names have long been forgotten, we must take the time to reflect on those lost as a whole. Thousands and thousands of LGBTQ+ individuals died for being themselves in a dystopian society that abhorred them.
Remember them always.