Persecuted and not remembered – queer-lesbian remembrance after 1945

About the Workshop

It was not until 2022 that a memorial for persecuted queers and lesbian women was built at the Ravensbrück Memorial, and this under protest. This protest came from the queer scene, from historians and from the general society. But why is the commemoration of queer and lesbian victims of Nazi persecution so controversial?

Why is the remembrance of persecuted queers and lesbians a blank space in the German culture of remembrance?

We want to explore this questions and look at how the history of queer-lesbian persecution was dealt with after 1945 in the FRG and the GDR. What initiatives have been there and what do memorial spaces look like today?

The workshop does not require any previous knowledge. We will work through the history together in the workshop. We will provide different materials (text and audio).