PARAGRAPH 175After some extensive researching I discovered a law known as paragraph 175 which I explain more in depth below and how the Nazis amended this law to abolish homosexuality and abortions in German society.
In 1934 by order of Hienrich Himmler a special Gestapo division was set up for the arrest of homosexuals in Germany. One of the first orders given to this division was obtaining so called ‘Pink Lists’ from the police from all over Germany that had been compiled since 1900 naming those they suspected of being homosexual. September 1st 1935 an amended version of paragraph 175 (the criminal code which was originally framed in 1871) came in to effect. Punishing a broad range of lewd, lascivious behaviour between men and completely banning homosexuality between men in German society with the threat of imprisonment, lesbianism was not banned. In 1936 Heinrich Himmler created the ’Reich Central Office’ for the combating of homosexuality and abortion. Special office (IIS) of the executive department 11 of the Gestapo was its name. The linking of homosexuality and abortion reflected the Nazi regimes population policies to promote a higher birth rate of its Aryan population. In Bad Tolz on February 18th 1937 before a group of high ranking SS officers Heinrich Himmler gave a talk on the dangers that homosexuality and abortion posed to the German birth rate. Paragraph 175 brought the number of prosecutions to an increase peaking in the years of 1937 to 1939 in both Germany and the annexed Austria in 1938. Half of all the convictions were of homosexual activity under the regime, occurred at this time. The police had stepped up the raids on known homosexual meeting places, seized address books leading to the further arrests of homosexuals as well as creating vast networks of informers to compile lists of those suspected of homosexual behaviour. Between the years of 1933 to 1945 it is estimated that 100,000 homosexuals were arrested. Of these 50,000 were sentenced. Most were incarcerated in prison and between 5,000 to 15,000 imprisoned in concentration camps. It is unknown how many homosexuals perished to this day but it is believed to be a lot more than 15,000 as estimated. |