preface
With the end of World War II in 1945, Nazi rule in Germany came to an end. The gay male community, ravaged by the Nazis, was finally given a new lease of life. Although the Nazi persecution ended, the impact of the Nazi persecution of the gay male community was profound. For the gay community, years of misery have left a deep imprint on their psyche, their self-perception has become more distorted, society's perception of them has been influenced by Nazi propaganda, and various acts of persecution have had a negative impact on the homosexual rights movement and German "sexology" developed during the Weimar period. In addition, the Nazi persecution of male homosexuality was one of its crimes, which, along with other notorious Nazi crimes, contributed to the eventual demise of the Nazis.
Impact on the homosexual community: false self-perception
The Nazi persecution of the homosexual community caused great physical and mental harm to the homosexual community, and the shame brought by the "pink triangle" is eternal, and various factors exacerbate the denial of the self by homosexuals. The homosexual community increasingly denied itself after the end of Nazi rule, and the mark of "sin" or "pathology" was deeply attached to the homosexual community. The homosexual community that survived the war still lived in trembling, and the social environment did not give the homosexual community a tolerant environment.
On the one hand, Nazi lists and those detained in concentration camps under Article 175 were still arrested and continued to be held. These people were still treated as prisoners after the war, homosexuality in East and West Germany was still illegal, many people were still arrested in Germany, these people's living conditions have not changed, they have always been legally illegal, Article 175 of Germany is still in effect, and the homosexual community is still socially excluded.
Most of the survivors lived in East Germany, West Germany, or Austria, but the criminal codes of these three countries continued to criminalize homosexual acts after the war, and police continued to arrest homosexual men throughout the 50s and 60s. When West Germany established an institution dedicated to compensating prisoners in concentration camps, surviving homosexuals were rarely able to receive such compensation, because it was believed that the Nazi persecution of homosexuals was correct and that homosexuality was indeed illegal. People even associate fascism with homosexuality, "bourgeois history not only disguises the story of homosexuals being persecuted under fascism, but also mistakenly associates fascism and sexual perversion through various war cartoons, etc., turning victims into criminals."
On the other hand, those homosexuals who were eventually allowed to return home, found that they could no longer live a normal life, they could not continue with their previous jobs. Former families and friends usually refused to accept them, and although they were no longer prisoners with pink triangles, this mark was imprinted in the impression of family and friends, who could not accept a homosexual family member or friend: at the same time, this mark was also imprinted in the spirit of the homosexual community, tormenting them and reminding them of the illegal and unacceptable group.
No matter where they live, they are scorned and discriminated against by their fellow human beings, and no one wants to talk to them and live in the shadow of society. This spiritual denial and exclusion from reality has caused great harm to the homosexual community, who have not completely escaped from Nazi rule, and Nazi persecution continues to hurt them. This oppressive environment makes the gay community more repressive and denying itself.
The interruption of the early gay rights movement
The rise of the Nazis dealt a huge blow to the gay rights movement, and from 1933 to 1935, when the Nazis came to power, the early gay rights movement was suppressed by fascism, and the early gay rights movement that arose during the Weimar period also declined after the blow.
The rise to power of the Nazis interrupted the gay rights movement worldwide at the time. This movement gradually grew during the Weimar period, trying to show the real life of homosexuality and popularize knowledge about homosexuality, involving pathology, psychology, and so on. They tried to repeal the relevant laws against homosexuality, and therefore petitioned, and worked to get opponents of gay rights to admit that homosexual sexual activity is normal, etc.
Many scientists and social figures of the Weimar period made great contributions to the gay rights movement and achieved certain results. The gay rights movement in Germany in the early 20th century was part of the early world gay movement, and major leaders such as Hesfeld were Germans or active within Germany. However, the Nazi persecution of homosexuals interrupted the early homosexual movement for its own rights, which had slowly developed since the early 20th century.
The Nazi persecution caused most of the campaigners and researchers to flee or be captured by the Nazis, and Hesfeld's lecture tour was interrupted. Hesfeld, France, also tried to rebuild a institute for sex sciences similar to the one he had established in Germany, and he himself died just after the project began. After his death, the World League for Reform also split and disbanded in 1935, and the gay rights movement began to decline.
Coupled with increasingly strict attitudes towards homosexuality worldwide, the early Gay Rights movement eventually stopped. Perhaps this movement is not as influential as the later gay rights movement, and the results are limited, just a prototype of the gay rights movement, but it is undeniable that it has achieved certain achievements, and it has also changed people's ideas and concepts at that time to a certain extent, so that more people understand homosexuality and accept the existence of homosexuality.
Implications for German society: distortion of public perception and the decline of the homosexual subculture
The Nazi persecution of homosexuals had a significant impact on German society and culture. The socio-cultural impact is first and foremost manifested in society's attitude towards homosexuality. During the Nazi rule, the measures taken interrupted the process of understanding homosexuality and resolving the contradictions between the two, and Nazi persecution and propaganda ideas had an impact on the general population, destroying the efforts of the activists of the gay liberation movement during the Weimar period.
Articles and propaganda about Nazi homophobia and homosexuality crimes replaced the Weimar official biography of homosexuality and equality, exacerbating the discrimination and fear of homosexuality and exacerbating the contradiction between the general public after the war to still reject the homosexual community. "Homophobia stereotypes further influenced the perception of homosexuality in German society, and social discrimination affected the treatment of homosexuals until the 60s of the 20th century. Although the official no longer persecutes homosexuals and protects homosexuals from physical harm, such as death or disability, it continues to cause considerable psychological damage to people."
Second, the Nazi persecution of homosexuality also affected the stability of society. Nazi regulation of homosexuality and sexuality, as well as extreme measures taken to create a society consistent with Nazi racism, affected social stability and harmony. On the one hand, the Nazis supported people in society to report homosexuality, and some people could report it just because of suspicion, and this measure affected not only homosexuals, but also innocent heterosexuals, everyone was at risk, and people in society trusted each other.
On the other hand, in order to avoid the emergence of homosexuality, the Nazis established brothels to satisfy men's sexual impulses, and brothels were also a way to cure homosexuality, and restricted prostitution to state-approved brothels, which is to indicate that prostitution is allowed to a certain extent in Germany, and brothels under control can both meet the sexual needs of men and maintain public health, because prostitutes in these areas need to undergo regular health checks, which causes a series of problems in German society. Enormous harm was done to women, especially in the camps, where some of the female prisoners were tortured and some chose to enter brothels, where they were trapped and suffered great harm.
To a certain extent, such measures have affected the morality and stability of society. Through various measures, the Nazis placed people's sexuality under state surveillance, which was too strict, violated people's privacy, and created a sense of anxiety and unease in society. Finally, the Nazi persecution of male homosexuals also had a certain impact on the cultural phenomenon in society. The subculture of homosexuality in society is no longer as active as it was in the Weimar period, and the related publishing industry, newspapers, films, and television have been influenced by the Nazis, either no longer publishing or promoting content about homosexuality, magazines such as "Friendship" and "Almanac" have to be stopped under the pressure of the government, or they publish some results under the influence of racism.
There were no more gay films like "We Are Different" during the Third Reich. The homosexual subculture struggled to survive, and only the element of homosexuality could be implied in some works, and all writers, scientists, and readers could not openly discuss homosexuality and study homosexuality, and the flourishing scene of homosexual research no longer existed.