Stefan Kosinski : A Gay Holocaust Survivor

Kitty Hart-Moxon recalls, “Arrival in Auschwitz is a defining moment in your life. The doors open, you are thrown out, greeted by barking dogs, screaming figures with whips, a stench of burning flesh and a glow of fire” (Harding). Hart-Moxon’s vivid memories of violence stayed with her a lifetime. If a person was fortunate to survive the agony of the Holocaust, one was left battered, broken, and in most cases asking why. Although the Jews, political dissidents, homosexuals, and other groups targeted by the Nazis will never get their lives back, they can gain some solace from identifying the perpetrators of the Holocaust and using that knowledge to ensure it never happens again. Many people share the burden of the crimes committed during the Holocaust, yet the three groups that can be allotted the most blame are top SS officers who planned the mass exterminations, the citizens of Germany who voted for and supported Hitler, and minor SS officers who carried out day-to-day duties.

Life for most homosexuals during the first half of the Twentieth century was one of hiding, being ever so careful to not give away their true feelings and predilections. Although the 1920s saw a brief moment of openness in American society, that was quickly destroyed with the progress of the Cold War, and by default, that of McCarthyism. The homosexuals of the 50s “felt the heavy weight of medical prejudice, police harassment and church condemnation … [and] were not able to challenge these authorities.” They were constantly battered, both physically and emotionally, by the society that surrounded them. The very mention or rumor of one’s homosexuality could lead to the loss of their family, their livelihood and, in some cases, their

Anton Fojn, a Roma gypsy recounts his entrance into a Nazi camp in Ian R. Friedman’s book: The Other Victims: First Person Stories of Non-Jews Persecuted by the Nazis:

“Sex was something mysterious which happened to married couples and Homosexuality was never mentioned; my mother told me my father did not believe it existed at all ‘until he joined the army’. As a child, I was warned about talking to ‘strange men’, without any real idea what this meant. I was left to find out for myself what it was all about.” Mike Newman, who was a child during the 1950s America recalls how homosexuality was perceived during the post-World War II era (F). This sexual oppression was not only in Newman’s household, but in almost everyone’s. While the civil rights movement began in the mid-1950s and ended late 1960s, the LGBT community started to come out of the closet slowly. The gay rights movement stemmed from the civil rights movement

Through the course of history, the Jewish people have been mistreated, condemned, robbed, even put to death because of their religion. In the Middle Ages, they were forced to wear symbols on their clothing, identifying them as Jews. The dates 1933 to 1945 marked the period of the deadly Holocaust in which many atrocities were committed against the Jewish people and minority groups not of Aryan descent. Six million innocent Jews were exterminated because of Hitler’s “Final Solution.” This paper will exhibit how Adolf Hitler used the three anti-Jewish policies written in history, conversion, expulsion, and annihilation to his advantage.

The dehumanization and organization of non-heteronormative (gay) men took place long before the Holocaust began, starting with the legislative passage of Paragraph 175 in Germany. This legislation resulted in highly detailed police records of men suspected of homosexual activities readily accessible. Inevitably these records made it easier than ever for gay men to be arrested and detained for their identities, and for their

Two Diaries, Donald Vining’s A Gay Diary Vol. Two and Martin Duberman’s Gay in the Fifties look into the everyday life of gay males in the post-World War II Era. While World War II increased freedom for men to sexually explore within the male community, post-World War II extended the freedom of exploration but also created a subsequent backlash against homosexual practices. Vining and Duberman’s diaries document an extension of gay freedoms in the post-World War II period. Although Vining and Duberman give contrasting accounts of their lives as gay males in the postwar period, common themes could be drawn in the form of friendships, sexual activity, relationships, and backlash by heteronormative society.

During the duration of World War II, the Jewish people of Europe were subjected to such inhumane actions at the hands of the Nazi party. Ellie Wiesel, in his memoir Night, describe this demoralizing treatment in great detail. As the reader delves deeper into Wiesel’s experiences, the dehumanization of the Jewish people becomes greater and greater. First, they were stripped of their possessions, then their names, and finally their dignity, and though the Nazi tried to finally stripped them of their humanity, they were unsuccessful.

During the Holocaust, where Hitler killed thousands of Jews, Hitler had formed six concentration camps. One named Chelmno used gas to kill its victims in very large groups. Chelmno was located near

Teaching at the Georgetown University, Karski was also a collaborator in Washington, D.C. How could a man who had such “secrets” live in that city and never talk about them? How was it possible not to know him, not to know what he knew? Karski himself understood the importance of the conference and the events it marked, when he declared: “It is my duty to participate. […] I, among many, did play a part in this story, and my usefulness to this conference lies in reporting it for the record.”1

The Lvov Ghetto was a temporary living space established by the Nazis for the “Inferior Race”. This race contained homosexuals, Poles, Jews, Slovaks, disabled people, and anyone who was viewed as “different”. This essay will be reviewing the history of Jews in Lvov before it became a ghetto, other history about the ghetto, and the main deaths that occurred in Lvov. The Lvov Ghetto lasted from November 1941 - June 1943.

Father Kolbe was someone that prisoners and inmates in the concentrations looked up to, calling him “The Saint from Auschwitz”. Even before he was imprisoned he was still looked upon housing 3,000 Polish refugees and 2,000 Jews. Not only housing them but feeding and clothing them. (auschwitz.dk)

In WWII, Human Rights were the last thing on the mind of Hitler and the Nazis’. The Nazis had a strong hatred for Gypsies, Homosexuals, and Jews, so much so that they felt entitled to abuse and treat them inhumanly. Eleanor Roosevelt wanted to act against those who were minimizing human

The holocaust started in 1933 when hitler was the ruler. At first, Hitler didn't want to kill the Jews he just wanted them to leave. The Jews didn't want to leave their homes. When hitler start to kill them he brought them to concentration camps. He brought them to the camps by a train.

The boy named Bruno was filled with curiosity. He soon left Berlin with his family. The dark grey "home" did not contain any light.