A wrenching, highly readable study. Nazi homophobia had its own
twisted logic. Homosexuality among "inferior peoples," i.e.,
non-Germans, was tolerated "as a tactic for weakening their
'vigor.'" German lesbians mostly were ignored, in part because
German anti-homosexual laws and traditions were directed at sex
between males. But Aryan men had to be kept "pure" and "clean.'
Plant estimates that between 50,000 and 59,000 German men were
convicted of homosexuality during the Nazi era and between 5,000
and 15,000 perished. In the concentration camps, gays (along with
Jews) were the lowest category of prisoner. Easily identified by
the pink triangles they wore, gays were often treated more harshly
by fellow prisoners than by guards. And because of their widely
disparate backgrounds, it was difficult to achieve the kind of
"group solidarity" that helped other prisoners to survive. In one
sense, the greatest indignations for survivors came at Liberation:
since Nazi anti-homosexual laws (under which mere "intent" was made
punishable) remained on the books in both Germanies until the late
1960's, many gays were still considered criminals at war's end.
Gays were also excluded from West German restitution programs. In
recounting the grisly story, Plant provides a history of
homosexuality in Germany, focusing on the work of gay pioneer
Magnus Hirschfeld. He also offers a study of Himmler's obsession
with gays as well as the deadly repercussions of the Roehm Affair.
Perhaps most poignant here is Plant's own story: sent to
Switzerland by his prescient father (a Socialist and a Jew) one
month after Hitler took power, Plant lost many of his friends in
the anti-gay firestorm. Recommended for both its personal insights
and scholarship. (Kirkus Reviews)
This is the first comprehensive book in English on the fate of the
homosexuals in Nazi Germany. The author, a German refugee, examines
the climate and conditions that gave rise to a vicious campaign
against Germany's gays, as directed by Himmler and his
SS--persecution that resulted in tens of thousands of arrests and
thousands of deaths.
In this Nazi crusade, homosexual prisoners were confined to death
camps where, forced to wear pink triangles, they constituted the
lowest rung in the camp hierarchy. The horror of camp life is
described through diaries, previously untranslated documents, and
interviews with and letters from survivors, revealing how the
anti-homosexual campaign was conducted, the crackpot homophobic
fantasies that fueled it, the men who made it possible, and those
who were its victims, this chilling book sheds light on a corner of
twentieth-century history that has been hidden in the shadows much
too long.
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