Elae Tyler May, History Whout Victims: Gays World War II, Reviews Amerin History, Vol. 19, No. 2 (Jun., 1991), pp. 255-259
Contents:
GAY MEN UNR THE NAZI REGIME
In the wter of 1915, a German soldier died a field hospal Rsia. We don’t know his name, but he helped revolutnize the way gay people have advoted for equaly. * gay history world war 2 *
One of the World War I’s most endurg legaci is largely fotten: It sparked the morn gay rights movement. Gay soldiers who survived the bloodlettg returned home nvced their ernments owed them somethg – full cizenship. Especially Germany, where gay rights already had a tenuo footg, they formed new anizatns to advote public for their rights.
Though the movement that lled self “homosexual emancipatn” began the 19th century, my rearch and that of historian Jason Crouthamel shows that the war turned the 19th-century movement to gay rights as we know today. The Scientific Humanarian Commtee was then the world’s leadg homosexual emancipatn group, boastg a membership of about 100 people.
"COMG OUT UNR FIRE": THE STORY OF GAY AND LBIAN SERVICEMEMBERS
The Nazi regime rried out a mpaign agast male homosexualy and persecuted gay men between 1933 and 1945. * gay history world war 2 *
Homosexualy meant the loss of one’s job, social ostracism, the risk of blackmail and perhaps crimal prosecutn. A new phase of gay rights. In addn, as I argue my book, the rhetoric of gay rights changed.
Gay and Lbian soldiers faced extraordary discrimatn durg World War II. Most found new muni of people and thrived spe the opprsn. Disver the film Comg Out Unr Fire that shar their story. * gay history world war 2 *
The prewar movement had foced on g science to prove that homosexualy was natural. They went directly to a set of mands that characteriz gay rights to this day – that gay people are upstandg cizens and serve to have their rights rpected. “The state mt regnize the full cizenship rights of verts, ” or homosexuals, an activist wrote the year after the war.
He mand not jt the repeal of the sodomy law, but the openg of ernment jobs to known homosexuals – a radil ia at the time, and one that would rema far out of reach for many s.
Throughout the 20th century, gay rights groups stggled for the right to serve openly the ary, a hallmark of rpectabily. ” It was, ironilly, the ghastly vlence and horrible human toll of the World War I that first spired such assertive lls, lls that characterized gay rights movements around the world the 20th century. In 1952, Alan Turg was forced to endure chemil stratn by the same ernment after beg prosecuted for homosexual acts.