Alleged Gay 'Concentratn Camps' In Chechnya Spark Global Outrage | HuffPost Voic

Contents:

• WERE GAY CONCENTRATN CAMP PRISONERS 'PUT BACK PRISON' AFTER WORLD WAR II?
• RSIA'S LGBT 'CONCENTRATN CAMPS': PRISONS FOR GAY MEN IN CHECHNYA, REPORTS SAY
• THE PK TRIANGLE: FROM NAZI LABEL TO SYMBOL OF GAY PRI
• ALLEGED GAY 'CONCENTRATN CAMPS' IN CHECHNYA SPARK GLOBAL OUTRAGE
• GAY CONCENTRATN CAMPS: SILENCE = DEATH
• GAY MEN UNR THE NAZI REGIME
• FIL CASTRO’S HORRIFIC RERD ON GAY RIGHTSPINKWASHCONCENTRATN MPS FOR GAYS. POLIL PRISONS WHERE THEY WERE TREATED LIKE ‘BEASTS.’ LISTEN UP, LIBERALS: BEFORE YOU CELEBRATE CASTRO, REMEMBER HIS VICTIMS.JAM KIRCHICKUPDATED APR. 13, 2017 2:17PM EDT PHOTO ILLTRATN BY ELIZABETH BROCKWAY/THE DAILY BEASTFIL CASTRO WAS MANY THGS: A REVOLUTNARY, A MUNIST, A GARLO ORATOR. AMID THE FAWNG ENIA RELEASED UPON HIS LONG-OVERDUE ATH AT THE AGE OF 90, SHOULD NEVER BE FOTTEN THAT HE WAS ALSO AN OPPRSOR, TORTURER, AND MURRER OF GAY PEOPLE. “WE WOULD NEVER E TO BELIEVE THAT A HOMOSEXUAL ULD EMBODY THE NDNS AND REQUIREMENTS OF NDUCT THAT WOULD ENABLE TO NSIR HIM A TE REVOLUTNARY, A TE MUNIST ANT,” CASTRO TOLD AN TERVIEWER 1965. “A VIATN OF THAT NATURE CLASH WH THE NCEPT WE HAVE OF WHAT A ANT MUNIST SHOULD BE.” IN THE EY OF CASTRO AND HIS REVOLUTNARY RA CHE GUEVARA—WHO EQUENTLY REFERRED TO GAY MEN AS MARIN, “FAGGOTS”—HOMOSEXUALY WAS HERENTLY UNTERREVOLUTNARY, A BOURGEOIS NCE. TO A TRADNAL LAT AMERIN MACHISMO THAT VIEWED GAYNS PEJORATIVELY, THEY MARRIED AN IOLOGIL FIXATN TREATG AS POLILLY UNSIRABLE. IT WASN’T LONG AFTER CASTRO ME TO POWER THAT POLICE BEGAN ROUNDG UP GAY MEN. IN 1965, THE REGIME TABLISHED PRISON WORK MPS KNOWN AS MILARY UNS TO AID PRODUCTN (UMAP), TO WHICH POSED HOMOSEXUALS, JEHOVAH’S WNS, AND OTHER “UNSIRABLE” ELEMENTS. ALERT TO THIS NEWS, THE MATTACHE SOCIETY—ONE OF THE EARLIT GAY RIGHTS ANIZATNS THE UNED STAT—HELD MONSTRATNS OUTSI THE UNED NATNS AND THE WHE HOE SUCCSIVELY OVER TWO DAYS. FOUR YEARS BEFORE THE WORLD-FAMO STONEWALL RTS, THE WERE TWO OF THE FIRST GAY RIGHTS PROTTS HELD THE UNED STAT. THAT SAME YEAR, ALLEN GSBERG WAS EXPELLED OM CUBA FOR SPREADG MORS THAT RL CASTRO—FIL’S BROTHER AND SUCCSOR AS PRINT—WAS GAY AND CLAIMG THAT GUEVARA WAS “CUTE.” PUTTG GAYS TO NCENTRATN MPS IS NOT THE ONLY PRACTICE CASTRO BORROWED OM THE NAZIS. DURG THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS, ACRDG TO RECENTLY RELEASED GERMAN TELLIGENCE FIL, THIS SO-LLED ANTI-FASCIST ATTEMPTED TO HIRE FORMER SS OFFICERS TO STCT HIS ARMY. THOUGH THE CUBAN REGIME CLOSED DOWN THE UMAPS THE LATE 1960S, NTUED TO REPRS GAY MEN AS IOLOGILLY SUBVERSIVE ELEMENTS. OPENLY HOMOSEXUAL PEOPLE WERE PREVENTED OM JOG THE COMMUNIST PARTY AND FIRED OM THEIR JOBS. ONE OF THE UNTRY’S MOST DISTGUISHED WRERS, REALDO ARENAS, REUNTED THE PRISON EXPERIENCE HE AND UNTLS OTHER GAY MEN ENDURED HIS MEMOIR BEFORE NIGHT FALLS. “IT WAS A SWELTERG PLACE WHOUT A BATHROOM,” HE WROTE. “GAYS WERE NOT TREATED LIKE HUMAN BEGS, THEY WERE TREATED LIKE BEASTS. THEY WERE THE LAST ON TO E OUT FOR MEALS, SO WE SAW THEM WALK BY, AND THE MOST SIGNIFINT CINT WAS AN EXCE TO BEAT THEM MERCILSLY.” GAYS PRISED A SIGNIFINT PORTN OF THE 125,000 CUBANS (“WORMS,” FIL CASTRO’S WORDS) PERMTED TO LEAVE THE ISLAND FOR THE UNED STAT AS PART OF THE 1980 MARIEL BOATLIFT. (THE 1984 DOCUMENTARY IMPROPER CONDUCT, WHICH TELLS THE STORI OF GAY AND STRAIGHT MARIELOS, REMAS ONE OF THE STARKT DICTMENTS OF THE CASTRO REGIME.) WHEN THE HUMAN IMMUNOFICIENCY VIS H THE ISLAND’S GAY MUNY THE MID-1980S, THE REGIME’S RPONSE WAS TO QUARANTE ALL HIV-POSIVE PEOPLE SANARIUMS, REFERRED TO AS “PRETTY PRISONS” BY THE FOUNR OF THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATN’S GLOBAL PROGRAM FOR AIDS. NO DOUBT ATTUNED TO THE WAY WHICH GAY RIGHTS HAS BEE CENTRAL TO THE AGENDA OF A GLOBAL LEFT CREASGLY SENSIVE TO THE CLAIMS OF INTY POLICS, THE CUBAN REGIME RECENT YEARS HAS TRIED TO FASHN SELF AS BEG THE VANGUARD OF HOMOSEXUAL LIBERATN. IN 2010, FIL CASTRO BELATEDLY ADMTED THAT HIS REVOLUTN’S TREATMENT OF GAYS NSTUTED “A GREAT JTICE.” IT WAS, HOWEVER, A S OF OMISSN RATHER THAN MISSN, TRANSPIRG ONLY BEE HE WAS DISTRACTED, TOO BY FIGHTG OFF YANKEE IMPERIALISTS TO PREVENT THE ATROCI BEG MTED HIS REVOLUTN’S NAME. TODAY, FIL’S NIECE (RL’S DGHTER) MARIELA CASTRO HAS EMERGED AS AN LGBT ACTIVIST, HELMG AN ANIZATN LLED THE CUBAN NATNAL CENTER FOR SEX EDUTN. COCINTALLY, SHE IS THE FOC OF A DOCUMENTARY, MARIELA’S MARCH: CUBA’S LGBT REVOLUTN, PREMIERG MONDAY NIGHT ON HBO. MARIELA HAS BEEN LD BY MANY THE WT AS A FORCE FOR PROGRSIVE CHANGE, AND HER CISN TO PH FOR ACCEPTANCE OF LGBTS MAY BE HELPG ON THE MARGS. BUT NO MATTER HOW MUCH LIFE FOR GAY CUBANS MIGHT HAVE IMPROVED OM THE DAYS OF FORCED LABOR MPS, ’S ALL OCCURRG WH THE NTEXT OF A TOTALARIAN SOCIETY WHOSE CIZENS NNOT VOTE, ARE NIED BASIC EEDOMS LIKE THE RIGHT TO SPEAK OR PROTT EELY, AND NNOT FORM ANIZATNS PENNT OF THE ERNMENT. INED, TELLS YOU EVERYTHG YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT NTEMPORARY CUBA THAT THE UNTRY’S MOST VISIBLE LGBT ACTIVIST IS THE STRAIGHT DGHTER OF RL CASTRO. MARIELA IS A HARD-RE MUNIST WHO SKIRTS AROUND HER FAY’S HORRIFIC RERD OF OPPRSG LGBT PEOPLE, AND HER ERSATZ GAY RIGHTS CSA REEKS OF BEG A VANY PROJECT AND PERSONALY CULT.SOME WTERN PROGRSIV NOHELS FALL FOR THIS PKWASHG CHARA. TAKE CANADIAN PRIME MISTER JT T, A VOL ADVOTE FOR LGBT RIGHTS HIS OWN UNTRY, WHO RELEASED A FULSOME STATEMENT UPON FIL CASTRO’S ATH. WHILE ALLOWG THAT THE CEASED TYRANT WAS A “NTROVERSIAL FIGURE,” THE DPH PRETTY BOY ENTHED, “I KNOW MY FATHER WAS VERY PROUD TO LL HIM A IEND AND I HAD THE OPPORTUNY TO MEET FIL WHEN MY FATHER PASSED JO THE PEOPLE OF CUBA TODAY MOURNG THE LOSS OF THIS REMARKABLE LEAR.”THE ATH OF FIL CASTRO IS REASON TO CELEBRATE. BUT TE EEDOM FOR CUBAN GAYS WILL REMA ELIVE AS LONG AS POLIL EEDOM IS NIED TO ALL CUBANS. JAM KIRCHICK

WERE GAY CONCENTRATN CAMP PRISONERS 'PUT BACK PRISON' AFTER WORLD WAR II?

On October 1, 1944, the first of two sets of medil experiments volvg stratn are performed on homosexuals at the Buchenwald ncentratn mp, near Weimar, Germany. Euthanasia was also performed regularly on Jews, Romani people and mentally ill MORE: The Pk Triangle: From Nazi Label to Symbol of Gay PriAmong the celt of Buchenwald’s overseers was the famo Ilsa Koch, wife of SS mandant Karl Koch and known as the “Wch of Buchenwald.

Due to limed rearch fundg, the high ath rate of gay men the mps, and the stigma attached to homosexualy, the victims are often fotten by the world.

RSIA'S LGBT 'CONCENTRATN CAMPS': PRISONS FOR GAY MEN IN CHECHNYA, REPORTS SAY

This clud more than 100 gay and lbian bars and f, songs and films, and Magn Hirschfeld’s Instut für Sexualwissenschaft (the Instute for Sexual Science), which ntaed thoands of books and journals on sexualy and genr. Some Nazis believed that the majory of, if not all, homosexuals were Jewish bee many of the proment advot of gay rights and equaly were (cludg Hirschfeld as well as progrsive psychiatrists, physicians, lawyers and jurists). More than 100, 000 men intified as homosexual were arrted and many sent to ncentratn mps at Buchenwald, Dach, Sachsenhsen, Mthsen and Achwz, where between 5, 000 and 15, 000 of them died.

Heger relled that gay men had to sleep wh their hands above their blankets, and if they didn’t they were taken outsi and had buckets of water thrown at them. The post was acpanied by a picture of a pk triangle -- the symbol officials Nazi Germany ed to intify and ostracize gay ncentratn mp prisoners -- and a quote drawn om the webse for The Pk Triangle of San Francis, an annual event rememberg those victimized unr Nazi le:. Between 1933 and 1945, an timated 100, 000 men were arrted for vlatg Nazi Germany's law agast homosexualy, and of the, approximately 50, 000 were sentenced to prison.

THE PK TRIANGLE: FROM NAZI LABEL TO SYMBOL OF GAY PRI

The men arrted for beg gay were targeted unr a revised versn of a 19th century statute, Paragraph 175, which was expand to tegorize homosexualy as a crime of "cency. And their alli feated the Nazi regime, the law remaed effect after World War II, as the Holot Memorial mm's exhib on the regime's anti-gay persecutn stat:. The Nazi versn of Paragraph 175 remaed on the books of the Feral Republic of Germany (Wt Germany) until the law was revised 1969 to crimalize homosexual relatns between men over the age of 21.

ALLEGED GAY 'CONCENTRATN CAMPS' IN CHECHNYA SPARK GLOBAL OUTRAGE

On 22 March 2017, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her bet approved a bill that overturned nvictns for gay men which had rried out unr Paragraph 175 between 1949 and 1969 and also provid pensatn for survivg victims.

The pk triangle symbol has sce evolved to an important remr for the gay, lbian, bisexual and transgenr muny of the ntug homophobia and humany agast them and other reprsed mori around the world.

GAY CONCENTRATN CAMPS: SILENCE = DEATH

Adolf Hler’s regime overturned all prev attempts Germany to crimalize same-sex acts, to challenge bigoted stereotyp about homosexualy, and to create tablishments where the men uld live and socialize openly.

Although the Third Reich was one of the most heartlsly homophobic regim morn history, practilly no first-hand acunts of Nazi vlence agast gay men existed eher Wt or East Germany before the early 1970s.

GAY MEN UNR THE NAZI REGIME

” That same year, the Soviet zone of occupatn (later the German Democratic Republic), Rudolf Klimmer appealed to the Organizatn of Those Persecuted by the Nazi Regime to offer regnn of gay men as victims of Natnal Socialist terror.

Acrdg to Erik Jensen, gays and lbians “not only met silence the postwar perd regardg the Nazi persecutn of homosexuals, but they also faced the pernic myth that homosexuals themselv formed the backbone of the Nazi movement. Calls for gay and lbian liberatn the palist mocraci the late 1960s and early ‘70s did fally create a more open atmosphere for the history of the opprsn of gays and lbians the Third Reich to emerge. Two years later filmmaker Rosa von Prnheim released Nicht r Homosexuelle ist pervers, sonrn die Suatn, r er lebt (The Homosexual is not Perverse, But, Rather, the Suatn Which He Liv.

FIL CASTRO’S HORRIFIC RERD ON GAY RIGHTSPINKWASHCONCENTRATN MPS FOR GAYS. POLIL PRISONS WHERE THEY WERE TREATED LIKE ‘BEASTS.’ LISTEN UP, LIBERALS: BEFORE YOU CELEBRATE CASTRO, REMEMBER HIS VICTIMS.JAM KIRCHICKUPDATED APR. 13, 2017 2:17PM EDT PHOTO ILLTRATN BY ELIZABETH BROCKWAY/THE DAILY BEASTFIL CASTRO WAS MANY THGS: A REVOLUTNARY, A MUNIST, A GARLO ORATOR. AMID THE FAWNG ENIA RELEASED UPON HIS LONG-OVERDUE ATH AT THE AGE OF 90, SHOULD NEVER BE FOTTEN THAT HE WAS ALSO AN OPPRSOR, TORTURER, AND MURRER OF GAY PEOPLE. “WE WOULD NEVER E TO BELIEVE THAT A HOMOSEXUAL ULD EMBODY THE NDNS AND REQUIREMENTS OF NDUCT THAT WOULD ENABLE TO NSIR HIM A TE REVOLUTNARY, A TE MUNIST ANT,” CASTRO TOLD AN TERVIEWER 1965. “A VIATN OF THAT NATURE CLASH WH THE NCEPT WE HAVE OF WHAT A ANT MUNIST SHOULD BE.” IN THE EY OF CASTRO AND HIS REVOLUTNARY RA CHE GUEVARA—WHO EQUENTLY REFERRED TO GAY MEN AS MARIN, “FAGGOTS”—HOMOSEXUALY WAS HERENTLY UNTERREVOLUTNARY, A BOURGEOIS NCE. TO A TRADNAL LAT AMERIN MACHISMO THAT VIEWED GAYNS PEJORATIVELY, THEY MARRIED AN IOLOGIL FIXATN TREATG AS POLILLY UNSIRABLE. IT WASN’T LONG AFTER CASTRO ME TO POWER THAT POLICE BEGAN ROUNDG UP GAY MEN. IN 1965, THE REGIME TABLISHED PRISON WORK MPS KNOWN AS MILARY UNS TO AID PRODUCTN (UMAP), TO WHICH POSED HOMOSEXUALS, JEHOVAH’S WNS, AND OTHER “UNSIRABLE” ELEMENTS. ALERT TO THIS NEWS, THE MATTACHE SOCIETY—ONE OF THE EARLIT GAY RIGHTS ANIZATNS THE UNED STAT—HELD MONSTRATNS OUTSI THE UNED NATNS AND THE WHE HOE SUCCSIVELY OVER TWO DAYS. FOUR YEARS BEFORE THE WORLD-FAMO STONEWALL RTS, THE WERE TWO OF THE FIRST GAY RIGHTS PROTTS HELD THE UNED STAT. THAT SAME YEAR, ALLEN GSBERG WAS EXPELLED OM CUBA FOR SPREADG MORS THAT RL CASTRO—FIL’S BROTHER AND SUCCSOR AS PRINT—WAS GAY AND CLAIMG THAT GUEVARA WAS “CUTE.” PUTTG GAYS TO NCENTRATN MPS IS NOT THE ONLY PRACTICE CASTRO BORROWED OM THE NAZIS. DURG THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS, ACRDG TO RECENTLY RELEASED GERMAN TELLIGENCE FIL, THIS SO-LLED ANTI-FASCIST ATTEMPTED TO HIRE FORMER SS OFFICERS TO STCT HIS ARMY. THOUGH THE CUBAN REGIME CLOSED DOWN THE UMAPS THE LATE 1960S, NTUED TO REPRS GAY MEN AS IOLOGILLY SUBVERSIVE ELEMENTS. OPENLY HOMOSEXUAL PEOPLE WERE PREVENTED OM JOG THE COMMUNIST PARTY AND FIRED OM THEIR JOBS. ONE OF THE UNTRY’S MOST DISTGUISHED WRERS, REALDO ARENAS, REUNTED THE PRISON EXPERIENCE HE AND UNTLS OTHER GAY MEN ENDURED HIS MEMOIR BEFORE NIGHT FALLS. “IT WAS A SWELTERG PLACE WHOUT A BATHROOM,” HE WROTE. “GAYS WERE NOT TREATED LIKE HUMAN BEGS, THEY WERE TREATED LIKE BEASTS. THEY WERE THE LAST ON TO E OUT FOR MEALS, SO WE SAW THEM WALK BY, AND THE MOST SIGNIFINT CINT WAS AN EXCE TO BEAT THEM MERCILSLY.” GAYS PRISED A SIGNIFINT PORTN OF THE 125,000 CUBANS (“WORMS,” FIL CASTRO’S WORDS) PERMTED TO LEAVE THE ISLAND FOR THE UNED STAT AS PART OF THE 1980 MARIEL BOATLIFT. (THE 1984 DOCUMENTARY IMPROPER CONDUCT, WHICH TELLS THE STORI OF GAY AND STRAIGHT MARIELOS, REMAS ONE OF THE STARKT DICTMENTS OF THE CASTRO REGIME.) WHEN THE HUMAN IMMUNOFICIENCY VIS H THE ISLAND’S GAY MUNY THE MID-1980S, THE REGIME’S RPONSE WAS TO QUARANTE ALL HIV-POSIVE PEOPLE SANARIUMS, REFERRED TO AS “PRETTY PRISONS” BY THE FOUNR OF THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATN’S GLOBAL PROGRAM FOR AIDS. NO DOUBT ATTUNED TO THE WAY WHICH GAY RIGHTS HAS BEE CENTRAL TO THE AGENDA OF A GLOBAL LEFT CREASGLY SENSIVE TO THE CLAIMS OF INTY POLICS, THE CUBAN REGIME RECENT YEARS HAS TRIED TO FASHN SELF AS BEG THE VANGUARD OF HOMOSEXUAL LIBERATN. IN 2010, FIL CASTRO BELATEDLY ADMTED THAT HIS REVOLUTN’S TREATMENT OF GAYS NSTUTED “A GREAT JTICE.” IT WAS, HOWEVER, A S OF OMISSN RATHER THAN MISSN, TRANSPIRG ONLY BEE HE WAS DISTRACTED, TOO BY FIGHTG OFF YANKEE IMPERIALISTS TO PREVENT THE ATROCI BEG MTED HIS REVOLUTN’S NAME. TODAY, FIL’S NIECE (RL’S DGHTER) MARIELA CASTRO HAS EMERGED AS AN LGBT ACTIVIST, HELMG AN ANIZATN LLED THE CUBAN NATNAL CENTER FOR SEX EDUTN. COCINTALLY, SHE IS THE FOC OF A DOCUMENTARY, MARIELA’S MARCH: CUBA’S LGBT REVOLUTN, PREMIERG MONDAY NIGHT ON HBO. MARIELA HAS BEEN LD BY MANY THE WT AS A FORCE FOR PROGRSIVE CHANGE, AND HER CISN TO PH FOR ACCEPTANCE OF LGBTS MAY BE HELPG ON THE MARGS. BUT NO MATTER HOW MUCH LIFE FOR GAY CUBANS MIGHT HAVE IMPROVED OM THE DAYS OF FORCED LABOR MPS, ’S ALL OCCURRG WH THE NTEXT OF A TOTALARIAN SOCIETY WHOSE CIZENS NNOT VOTE, ARE NIED BASIC EEDOMS LIKE THE RIGHT TO SPEAK OR PROTT EELY, AND NNOT FORM ANIZATNS PENNT OF THE ERNMENT. INED, TELLS YOU EVERYTHG YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT NTEMPORARY CUBA THAT THE UNTRY’S MOST VISIBLE LGBT ACTIVIST IS THE STRAIGHT DGHTER OF RL CASTRO. MARIELA IS A HARD-RE MUNIST WHO SKIRTS AROUND HER FAY’S HORRIFIC RERD OF OPPRSG LGBT PEOPLE, AND HER ERSATZ GAY RIGHTS CSA REEKS OF BEG A VANY PROJECT AND PERSONALY CULT.SOME WTERN PROGRSIV NOHELS FALL FOR THIS PKWASHG CHARA. TAKE CANADIAN PRIME MISTER JT T, A VOL ADVOTE FOR LGBT RIGHTS HIS OWN UNTRY, WHO RELEASED A FULSOME STATEMENT UPON FIL CASTRO’S ATH. WHILE ALLOWG THAT THE CEASED TYRANT WAS A “NTROVERSIAL FIGURE,” THE DPH PRETTY BOY ENTHED, “I KNOW MY FATHER WAS VERY PROUD TO LL HIM A IEND AND I HAD THE OPPORTUNY TO MEET FIL WHEN MY FATHER PASSED JO THE PEOPLE OF CUBA TODAY MOURNG THE LOSS OF THIS REMARKABLE LEAR.”THE ATH OF FIL CASTRO IS REASON TO CELEBRATE. BUT TE EEDOM FOR CUBAN GAYS WILL REMA ELIVE AS LONG AS POLIL EEDOM IS NIED TO ALL CUBANS. JAM KIRCHICK

) Prnheim (born Holger Radke 1942) had actually taken the name “Rosa” (German for Pk) to draw attentn to the Pk Triangle, the intifitn badge assigned by the SS to homosexuals the ncentratn mps. Kohout went on to scribe the btal regime of forced labor and systematic vlence he and other gay men forced to wear the Pk Triangle experienced there.

Long margalized, this history is more important than ever— Germany and beyond—as homophobia still pos a fundamental threat to human eedom and equaly. We sat down wh Sir John Dermot Turg, Alan Turg’s nephew and thor of a new book on Bletchley Park, to discs his uncle’s role pivotal role puter science and his persecutn for beg gay the 1950s. Comg out of the 1920’s which was a more open time for homosexuals the Weimar Republic, that gave way to the btaly of the 1930’s and the Holot to e.