Photo of man arrested under Paragraph 175: German police file photo of a man arrested in October 1937 for suspicion of violating Paragraph175. Credit and copyright: Landesarchiv, Berlin/USHMM in the Public domain and available for publication
Because still on the youthful wing
The scent of innocent beauty lies
That touched by a stranger scatters and dies –
This love must I tenderly sing.
The scent of innocent beauty lies
That touched by a stranger scatters and dies –
This love must I tenderly sing.
Yet since you think it a dirty thing
Have dragged it through fear and infamy
and kept it under lock and key –
This love will I freely sing.
Have dragged it through fear and infamy
and kept it under lock and key –
This love will I freely sing.
To love’s persecuted my song I bring
and to the outcasts of our time
Since happy or not this love is mine –
This love dare I loudly sing.
and to the outcasts of our time
Since happy or not this love is mine –
This love dare I loudly sing.
‘The Nameless Love’ by John Henry Mackay, 1924 ‘Der Eigene’
"There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
. . . a time to plant and a time to uproot,
. . . a time to tear down and a time to build,
. . . a time to search and a time to give up,
. . . a time to be silent and a time to speak."
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
and a season for every activity under heaven:
. . . a time to plant and a time to uproot,
. . . a time to tear down and a time to build,
. . . a time to search and a time to give up,
. . . a time to be silent and a time to speak."
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
During the Nazi period up to 100,000 gay men and women were persecuted and imprisoned as a result of their sexuality under the Penal code of 1871 called § 175. The Third Reich had no place for such 'deviants' and set out a systematic strategy to rid itself of this 'poison'. As a result 10,000 to 15,000 were sent to concentration camps, where as many as 60% lost their lives.
Those that did survive were subject to ongoing persecution in post-war society and struggled hard to be recognized as victims of the Holocaust. In 2004 very few of these witnesses are left to speak of their experiences. In a few years there may be no survivors left. Their voices call now to future generations to listen and learn to ensure that their plight does not slip quietly in to the realms of history alone.
The contents of this site might not constitute easy reading, but the message is simple: NEVER AGAIN. Listen closely to these voices because they are calling to you…
Those that did survive were subject to ongoing persecution in post-war society and struggled hard to be recognized as victims of the Holocaust. In 2004 very few of these witnesses are left to speak of their experiences. In a few years there may be no survivors left. Their voices call now to future generations to listen and learn to ensure that their plight does not slip quietly in to the realms of history alone.
The contents of this site might not constitute easy reading, but the message is simple: NEVER AGAIN. Listen closely to these voices because they are calling to you…