New York Jets wide receiver Jeremy Kerley (11) makes a catch during the second quarter against the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium. (Photo by: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE) Political and social conditions in nineteenth-century Germany allowed people to publicly campaign for the decriminalization of sexual relations between men and the repeal of Paragraph 175. Eventually, individual campaigners began to organize together into groups dedicated to decriminalization. In addition to joining such groups, men who were attracted to other men also began to socialize at bars and other meeting places. These efforts helped men connect with each other and form early networks and communities. The gender identity of people whose sex assigned at birth conforms to their identified or lived gender. Gay men responded to Nazi persecution in different ways. Not all gay men made the same decisions. Nor did they all have the same choices. For example, gay men categorized by the Nazi regime as Aryan had far more options than those categorized as Jews or Roma (Gypsies). Jewish and Romani gay men—above all—faced persecution for racial reasons.

Before coming to power, Adolf Hitler and many other Nazi leaders condemned Weimar culture as decadent and degenerate. Part of this condemnation was a rejection of the era’s open expressions of sexuality, including the visibility of gay communities. Some prominent Nazis, including Alfred Rosenberg and Heinrich Himmler , were clearly homophobic. However, Hitler and other Nazi leaders rarely spoke publicly about homosexuality. In fact, it was not part of the 1920 Nazi Party platform, which focused on such issues as the creation of a Greater German state, the Jews, and the economy.The Kripo and the Gestapo relied on tips or denunciations from the public to gather information about men’s intimate lives and uncover potential violations of Paragraph 175. A neighbor, acquaintance, colleague, friend, or family member could inform the police of their suspicions. The language people used in denunciations makes it clear that these Germans tended to agree with Nazi attitudes towards homosexuality. Denouncers referred to those they denounced as “effeminate,” “unmanly,” and “perverse.” Unlike raids, denunciations were a very effective tool of repression. These acts resulted in perhaps tens of thousands of arrests and convictions. Interrogations

A term for a person assigned female at birth whose gender expression is masculine and who may identify as lesbian or as a man; it can be used pejoratively as a slur for a masculine individual who was assigned female at birth. Houston Texans defensive end Antonio Smith (94) in action against the Miami Dolphins in the second quarter at Reliant Stadium. (Photo by: Brett Davis-US PRESSWIRE)The Gestapo and Kripo interrogated men caught up in raids, as well as those denounced. During these often physically and psychologically brutal interrogations, the police frequently insisted on full confessions. Under the pressure of harsh interrogation and torture methods, men were forced to name their sexual partners. This in turn helped the police identify other men to arrest and interrogate. In this way, the police caught entire networks of gay men. The Fate of Those Arrested Bowcott, Owen (26 May 2016). "Britain's first openly gay judge becomes master of the rolls". The Guardian . Retrieved 15 August 2018. In this report, pseudonyms are used for all interviewees who are students, teachers, or administrators in schools. Unless requested by interviewees, pseudonyms are not used for individuals and organizations who work in a public capacity on the issues discussed in this report. Glossary

But some leaders, as well as rank and file members, of the Nazi Party held attitudes that were more varied and ambivalent. There were known gay men in the Nazi movement, most notably Ernst Röhm. Röhm used the word “ gleichgeschlechtlich ,” same-sex oriented, to describe himself. He was the leader of the SA ( Sturmabteilung, commonly called Stormtroopers) , a violent and radical Nazi paramilitary. Not all men arrested under Paragraph 175 shared the same fate. Typically, an arrest would lead to a trial before a court. The court would either acquit or convict the accused and sentence them to a fixed prison sentence. The conviction rate was approximately 50 percent. Most convicted men were released after serving their prison sentence. In rarer cases, the Kripo or the Gestapo would send a man directly to a concentration camp as a “homosexual” (“ homosexuell ”) offender. Typically, but not always, men sent to concentration camps in this way had multiple convictions or other extenuating circumstances. The Postgame blog over at Yahoo is getting a lot of buzz for its look at the new NFL uniforms designed by Nike, that promise the latest in fabric technology. The Church vocally opposes divorce, euthanasia, abortion, total population control, and homosexual marriage—which it groups under the acronym “DEATH”—and rejects recognition of LGBT rights with particular fervor when it is concerned those rights might eventually open the door to same-sex unions. [16] Beyond its influence in law and policy, the Church has shaped attitudes toward homosexuality and transgender identities throughout the country; citing religious doctrine, teachers, counselors, and other authority figures often impress upon students that it is immoral or unnatural to be LGBT. The mistreatment that students faced in schools was exacerbated by discriminatory policies and practices that excluded them from fully participating in the school environment. Schools impose rigid gender norms on students in a variety of ways—for example, through gendered uniforms or dress codes, restrictions on hair length, gendered restrooms, classes and activities that differ for boys and girls, and close scrutiny of same-sex friendships and relationships. For example, Marisol D., a 21-year-old transgender woman, said:But not all groups that advocated for decriminalization shared the same political perspective. For example, the German Jewish physician and sex researcher, Magnus Hirschfeld, founded the internationally renowned Institute for Sexual Science ( Institut für Sexualwissenschaft ) in Berlin in 1919. Hirschfeld was a pacifist and a leftist, and the Institute tended to attract people who were also left of center. The Institute conducted pioneering scientific studies and provided public education on human sexuality. It also offered various other services related to sex, including birth control and marriage counseling. Barr, Damian; Bannerman, Lucy (14 June 2008). "Soldiers can wear their uniforms with pride at gay parade says MoD". The Times. London . Retrieved 23 May 2010.

Revise the standard sexuality education curriculum to ensure it aligns with UNESCO’s guidelines for comprehensive sexuality education, is medically and scientifically accurate, is inclusive of LGBT youth, and covers same-sex activity on equal footing with other sexual activity. These early measures were just the beginning of the Nazi campaign against homosexuality. Nazi actions would escalate in the second half of the 1930s. Escalating the Persecution of Gay Men, 1934–1936 Human Rights Watch conducted the research for this report between September 2016 and February 2017 in 10 cities on the major islands of Luzon and the Visayas in the Philippines. To identify interviewees, we conducted outreach through LGBT student groups, particularly at the university level. Human Rights Watch interviewed members of those groups as well as students who were known to those groups, whether or not they had experienced discrimination in school. We sought interviews with students of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities, but gay boys and transgender girls were disproportionately represented among the students identified by LGBT groups and the students who attended the group discussions. There were gay men who took the risk of resisting the Nazi state for political and personal reasons. Some gay men joined underground anti-Nazi resistance groups or helped hide Jews. Documenting and Memorializing Gay Experiences

Freedom of Expression

Today, the terms “ Homosexualität ” and “ homosexuell ” are often considered derogatory. At the time, however, they came into common use in Germany and beyond. These new German words were adopted into both English and French. With time, they became part of the international lexicon on sexuality. Although no longer widely accepted, these German words were early attempts to describe sexual orientation. In the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries, LGBTQ+ communities have built on, and challenged, this language. Gay Men during the Weimar Republic (1918–1933) A sexual orientation in which a person is sexually or romantically attracted to both men and women.