Exhibition
Sachsenhausen and Berlin
March, 26 until August, 1^st, 2000
(Translation of the brochure)

The years of the Weimar Republic brought a greater social acceptance of homosexuals. lt seemed only a matter of time before decriminalization would be a fact. These hopes were crushed. Two exhibitions, presented simultaneously in Sachsenhausen and Berlin, will shed a light on the persecution of gay men in Berlin and their specific situation in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.

The life stories of homosexual men under the Nazi regime are told through moving, very personal documents and objects. Many of these are shown for the first time: drawings from the camp, family mementoes as weIl as archival material.

§ 175, the penal code section on homosexual acts was tightened in 1935 and used to step up measures against homosexual men. In 1936 Himmler appointed a special authority, the 'Reich administration to combat homosexuality and abortion'. Court sentences reached new heights. In 1934, almost 1000 gay men throughout the German Reich were sentenced according to the old § 175. By 1938 their number had increased eightfold. A flood of new edicts followed. Even worse than a jail sentence was imprisonment in penitentiaries and the camps in the northern swamp areas of Germany (Emsland). After the outbreak of war, these men were usually sent either to a concentration camp or to the front. From then on hardly anyone was released from a camp or prison.

Never before has the life of gay men in the concentration camp been shown in such detail. The Sachsenhausen camp files were either destroyed by the SS or disappeared into Moscow archives. Occasional copies landed in the Sachsenhausen memorial. Interviews with eyewitnesses and research in Moscow, Sachsenhausen, Potsdam and Berlin have now enabled us to trace the names of 700 individuals affected.

After 1945, the Nazi version of §175 remained valid. Most attempts to be officially recognized as a victim were smothered, as were the attempts to obtain state "compensation". Gay victims of the Nazi regime are still awaiting their social and juridical rehabilitation.
 

In the Sachsenhausen Memorial:

Persecution in Berlin 1933-45 / Biographies / Sachsenhausen concentration camp 1936-45

Magnus Hirschfeld founded the first ever gay Organisation. He did not return to Nazi Germany from his journey around the world. His life companion, Karl Giese joined him in exile.

As the Nazis seized power in March 1933, they set upon dismantling the gay subculture of Berlin. Nearly 100 clubs and cafes, political organisations and smaller groups, three publishing houses and bookshops were closed down by the police or forced to dissolve themselves.

From autumn 1934 onward, the state systematically lashed out against homosexuals. The Gestapo carried out raids and mass arrests. Jail sentences were dished out arbitrarily. Beatings and torture were a common means to force people to "confess" and name others. The aim of all these measures was to isolate homosexuals and annihilate their networks.

Faced with such massive acts of terror, many homosexuals saw no option but to retreat into a quiet life, hide own's true identity, enter into a fake marriage and general compliance. Living out one's sexuality implied resistance which would endanger lives.

Shortly after the war began, in July 1940 Himmler released an edict which would lead to many homosexuals having to die in concentration camps: "I request that in future all homosexuals who have seduced more than one partner, shall, after their release from jail, be held in preventive custody."

From its installation in 1936 up until 1945, homosexual men were among the inmates of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. They were called "175ers" and wore the pink triangle.

From late 1939 till mid-1943 the Sachsenhausen concentration camp was "hell on earth" for homosexuals. During this time over 600 men were killed. In summer 1942, 90 homosexual inmates of the Klinkerwerk fell victim to a special murder campaign lasting 6 weeks.

Despite the SS terror, homosexual camp inmates succeeded in maintaining a network of support and solidarity. They participated in illegally organized cultural events. Richard Grune was able to create two books with camp songs. From 1943 onward, homosexuals working as prisoner-doctors and nurses managed to help their comrades in the infirmary barracks.

Robert T. Odeman, a cabaret artist, was sentenced twice (1937; 1942) in Berlin on grounds of homosexualiy. In late 1944 he was sent to the Sachsenhausen camp. In April 1945 he and two other gay men fled from the death march. Like other homosexual survivors, he was never awarded any compensation.
 

Translation, Berlin district court document, dated 8 April 1937:

The merchant Wilhelm Machold, born on 7.5.96 in Frankfurt/Main, presently in the State Hospital, Berlin is to be held in custody awaiting trial

He is accused of having wilfully committed a series of unlawful acts in Berlin which to date have not lapsed

a) having committed unnatural acts with persons of the male sex

b) having committed an unnatural act with another man or complying to be used by him for an unnatural act

Offence acc. to penal code §§ 175 (old and new versions), and 74

He is under serious suspicion of having committed this crime and due to the expectation of a long sentence in danger of trying to escape

Signed - District court judge
 
 

The Schwules Museum in Berlin/Kreuzberg presents thirty biographies of gay men. Here, an outline of four of these.

Ernst Lieder was only released from preventive custody because the Gestapo wanted to try and track down his circle of friends. This strategy, however, did not work. lt was common practice to put pressure on gay cafe owners and staff as well as boys on the beat to sign confessions, inform on (former) customers and provide numerous names. The exact fate of Ernst Lieder is not known.

Wilhelm Machold (then 46) died on 10 July 1942 during a killing campaign staged against homosexuals at the Klinkerwerk. He had been a member of the Human Right League and an avid reader of gay magazines, as the Gestapo wrote after a visit with search-warrant. He was not in the least intimidated and resisted giving any names, as later notes showed: "Questioning was broken off since nothing could be gotten out of him."

Walter Timm was a high school teacher. In 1937 the Muenster regional court sentenced him to six years penitentiary for misdemeanors according to § 175. He spent more than eight years in camps and prisons. From 1943-45 Timm was in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp; he was a nurses' aide, clerk and block senior in the infirmary barracks. He survived the death march and in 1945 made a series of drawings about his experience in Sachsenhausen.

We wish to thank all those who loaned us objects; the Deutsche
Klassenlotterie Berlin and the Brandenburg Ministery for Science, Research and Culture for enabling us to mount the exhibition and the Heinrich Boell Foundation for financing the catalogue.

Schwules Museum

Opening hours: daily (except Tuesday) 2 - 6 pm
Saturday 2 - 7 pm
Guided tours through the exhibition Saturday 5 pm

Gedenkstaette und Museum Sachsenhausen

Opening hours: daily (except Monday) 8.30 am - 4.30 pm
from April 1 until 6 pm

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