At 7, I turned on the tv and began watching HBO's presentation of "Paragraph 175," a documentary about the persecution of homosexuals by the Nazis. Paragraph 175 is a reference to that part of the German penal code dealing with homosexual acts. After Hitler came to power, he sought to purge German society of many deviant elements among whom were homosexuals. As many as 100,000 men were arrested, and tens of thousands were sent to concentration camps. It is estimated that 6,000 gay men died in the camps.

Of the many stories of the Holocaust, this is one that, for all practical purposes, has been hidden. For although war's end brought freedom for those incarcerated, it did not bring amnesty. The acts for which gay men were imprisoned under Paragraph 175 were equally illegal under the laws of the victors - USA, UK and USSR. Hence very few were willing to discuss their experiences.

"Paragraph 175" is the first time that some of these individuals have had a chance to tell their accounts publicly. And it may be the only documentation since all the participants are in their 80s and 90s. At the end the documentary indicates that only two other survivors are known to still be alive. (Those two refused to be interviewed.)

In halting words and shaky voices, they told of a vibrant gay and lesbian culture in the Berlin of the 20s and early 30s. Which was soon snuffed out. Persecution, arrests and deportation became the new standard. They spoke of destruction and death. Of atrocities and torture. Of being unable even to discuss what had happened.

"To forget constitutes a crime against memory -- whoever forgets becomes the executioner's accomplice"
(Elie Wiesel)

PAX!