Persecution of gay people in Nazi Germany
Persecution peaked in the years prior to World War II and was extended to areas annexed by Germany, including Austria, the Czech lands, and Alsace–Lorraine. The Nazi regime considered the elimination of all manifestations of homosexuality in Germany one of its goals, claiming it was a Jewish conspiracy to undermine the German people. He was 11 when his father was killed in World War I. After his mother died, he and his sister Ina were raised by two elderly aunts. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust
Homosexual Victims of Nazi Persecution Alongside millions of Jews, homosexuals were also persecuted by the Nazis. Gay men had no place in the Nazi vision as they did not enable growth of the Aryan population and were deemed unfit to be soldiers. Soon after Hitler took office, he banned all homosexual and lesbian organisations. Frank Kameny saw combat in Europe during the war, only to return home to face discrimination from the very country he served. The history of drag performances can be traced back to the late s. Persecution of homosexuals in Nazi Germany
The Nazi-era amendments to Paragraph were maintained for over two decades in West Germany, resulting in the arrest of around , gay men between and , with some Holocaust. Even before his deportation to the concentration camp , the year-old had been convicted twice for homosexual contact and sent to a labor camp. The harrowing story of the Hamburg-born journeyman tailor can be read in the book "Medicine and Crime," published by the Brandenburg Memorials Foundation, to which the Sachsenhausen concentration camp memorial and museum belongs. 
LGBTQ+ in World War II
It is unclear how many of these men publicly or privately identified as gay or were part of gay communities and networks that had been established in Germany before the Nazi rise to power. Beginning in , the Nazi regime harassed and dismantled these communities. They also arrested large numbers of gay men under Paragraph Alongside the murder of six million Jews, the Holocaust saw the Nazis target five million other victims in their attempt to wipe out entire communities from Germany and beyond. But to this day, many of these gay victims receive little attention.
How LGBTQ Victims Were Erased From Holocaust History
In the gains made by gay men in Germany and the Soviet Union were abruptly reversed. Lesbian, gay and trans life in Germany began to thrive at the beginning of the 20th century. Albrecht Becker — imprisoned by the Nazis for being gay. 
Gay Men under the Nazi Regime
Shortly before he died in , Dudley Cave reflected: “They used us when it suited them, and then victimised us when the country was no longer in danger. I am glad I served but I am angry that military homophobia was allowed to wreck so many lives for over 50 years after we gave our all for a freedom that gay people were denied.”. .
LGBTQ People
Tens of thousands of gay men and lesbians were persecuted by the Nazis but stigma and a lack of research funding has kept their history hidden. .
LGBTQ+ History Month
An estimated , men who were accused of homosexuality were deported to concentration camps. Most died in the camps, often from exhaustion. Many were castrated and subjected to gruesome medical experiments. Collective murder actions were undertaken against gay detainees, exterminating hundreds at a time. .