Andrea Torres
March 22, 2017
Global 10H
How did the Treatment of Homosexuals Differ Due to Gender in Germany during WWII?
The early thirties was the beginning of an era of prejudice and animosity towards those who had different religious beliefs, ethnicities, political beliefs, and sexual orientations in Germany. These minorities did not fit Nazi Germany’s agenda. This disapproval led to the attempted genocide, a mass murder and extermination of a particular group of people. The Nazi party believed all inferior races and groups were a threat to the Third Reich. These victims included Jews and people from the Soviet Union, disabled people, Jehovah’s witnesses, gypsies, and homosexuals. Hitler’s racist ideology labeled homosexuals as enemies …show more content…
More specifically, Paragraph 175 of the criminal code, declared homosexuality to be punishable by imprisonment. Johannson and Perry note in an english translation of “Homosexuals in Nazi Germany”, “A male who commits lewd and lascivious acts with another male or permits himself to be so abused for lewd and lascivious acts, shall be punished by imprisonment.” (Simon Wiesenthal Center Annual Vol. 7 (1990). English translation by Warren Johansson and William Perry in "Homosexuals in Nazi Germany," Simon Wiesenthal Center Annual, Vol. 7 (1990). However, in 1930 there was a significant gay rights movement that developed in Berlin, Germany. Weimar Republic was not aggressive towards the halting of homosexuality and would allow it to continue behind closed doors. This was taken as a sign of acceptance and posed a positive toleration of homosexuals, which was perceived as liberal for the time period. This tolerance encouraged homsexuals to be more open and protest to repeal Paragraph 175. Due to these protests and changes, there was a rapid influx and increase of open discussion on homosexuality and meetings, books, articles, gay nightclubs and films. ("Lesbians and the Third Reich" United States Holocaust Memorial Museum) It is plausible that in pre World War II there was an uprising of acceptance of …show more content…
However, there were significant differences in treatment between male and female homosexuals. Men were incarcerated, and tortured because of their sexuality. Homosexual women were not viewed as a danger to Nazi Germany during World War II due to their inferior roles in German society. Therefore leading the lack of criminalization and targeting of Lesbians. A woman's job was to mother Aryan babies. A lesbian’s sexuality did not inhibit her duties during World War II. Male homosexuals were unfit according the the Nazi’s. Both were treated unfairly during the Third
March 22, 2017
Global 10H
How did the Treatment of Homosexuals Differ Due to Gender in Germany during WWII?
The early thirties was the beginning of an era of prejudice and animosity towards those who had different religious beliefs, ethnicities, political beliefs, and sexual orientations in Germany. These minorities did not fit Nazi Germany’s agenda. This disapproval led to the attempted genocide, a mass murder and extermination of a particular group of people. The Nazi party believed all inferior races and groups were a threat to the Third Reich. These victims included Jews and people from the Soviet Union, disabled people, Jehovah’s witnesses, gypsies, and homosexuals. Hitler’s racist ideology labeled homosexuals as enemies …show more content…
More specifically, Paragraph 175 of the criminal code, declared homosexuality to be punishable by imprisonment. Johannson and Perry note in an english translation of “Homosexuals in Nazi Germany”, “A male who commits lewd and lascivious acts with another male or permits himself to be so abused for lewd and lascivious acts, shall be punished by imprisonment.” (Simon Wiesenthal Center Annual Vol. 7 (1990). English translation by Warren Johansson and William Perry in "Homosexuals in Nazi Germany," Simon Wiesenthal Center Annual, Vol. 7 (1990). However, in 1930 there was a significant gay rights movement that developed in Berlin, Germany. Weimar Republic was not aggressive towards the halting of homosexuality and would allow it to continue behind closed doors. This was taken as a sign of acceptance and posed a positive toleration of homosexuals, which was perceived as liberal for the time period. This tolerance encouraged homsexuals to be more open and protest to repeal Paragraph 175. Due to these protests and changes, there was a rapid influx and increase of open discussion on homosexuality and meetings, books, articles, gay nightclubs and films. ("Lesbians and the Third Reich" United States Holocaust Memorial Museum) It is plausible that in pre World War II there was an uprising of acceptance of …show more content…
However, there were significant differences in treatment between male and female homosexuals. Men were incarcerated, and tortured because of their sexuality. Homosexual women were not viewed as a danger to Nazi Germany during World War II due to their inferior roles in German society. Therefore leading the lack of criminalization and targeting of Lesbians. A woman's job was to mother Aryan babies. A lesbian’s sexuality did not inhibit her duties during World War II. Male homosexuals were unfit according the the Nazi’s. Both were treated unfairly during the Third