Opposite the Holocaust Memorial, there is a signpost directing to the memorial to the "Homosexual Suffering under the National Socialists" or something to that effect. It's a large block of polished concrete, much like the Eisenmann piece. A plague proclaims the following:
In Nazi Germany, homosexuality was persecuted to a degree unprecedented in history, In 1935, the National Socialists issued an order making all male homosexuality a crime; the provisions governing homosexual behaviour in Section 175 of the Criminal Code were significantly expanded and made stricter. A kiss was enough reason to prosecute. There were more than 50,000 convictions Under Section 175, the punishment was imprisonment; in some cases, convicted offenders were castrated. Thousands of men were sent to concentration camps for being gay; many of them died there. They died of hunger, disease and abuse or were the victims of targeted killings.
The National Socialists destroyed the communities of gay men and women. Female homosexuality was not prosecuted, except in annexed Austria; the National Socialists did not find it as threatening as male homosexuality. However, lesbians who came into conflict with the regime were also subject to repressive measures. Under the Nazi regime, gay men and women lived in fear and under constant pressure to hide their sexuality.
For many years, the homosexual victims of National Socialism were not included in public commemorations - neither in the Federal Republic of Germany nor in the German Democratic Republic. In both East and West Germany, homosexuality continued to be persecuted for many years. In the Federal Republic, Section 175 remained in force without amendment until 1969.
Because of its history, Germany has a special responsibility to actively oppose the violation of gay men's and lesbians' human rights. In many parts of the world, people continue to be persecuted for their sexuality. Homosexual love remains illegal and a kiss can be dangerous.
With this memorial, the Federal Republic of Germany intends to honour the victims of persecution and murder, to keep alive the memory of this injustice, to create a lasting symbol of the opposition to enmity, intolerance and the exclusion of gay men and lesbians.
As one walks past the memorial, a view is afforded past through the small window in the block. One the inside, a black and white film plays: it's two boys kissing in the park. It is simple and beautiful. The piece is conceived so that the background in the film appears to be in the park. I wonder should we ever see such a thing in Dublin.
