Nazism redefined gender and sexual politics for society during the twentieth century, which determined the trajectory of male homosexuality under the Third Reich. While the party did not actively promote homosexuality, early Nazism valued hypermasculinity and homosocial relationships. Right-wing veterans of the First World War were attracted to the Nazi paramilitary unit, Sturmabteilung (SA), led by Ernst Röhm, a well-known gay man. The SA leaders promoted close male bonds among the members, which led to homoerotic relationships. If homoerotism was permitted within the early Nazi Party, why was there a steady decline in the treatment of gay men under the Third Reich? Based on personal narratives, memoirs, and official documents, this study demonstrates that the party became increasingly violent against gay German men because Heinrich Himmler, leader of the paramilitary group Schutzstaffel (SS), was obsessed with controlling sexuality to advance the Aryan race.
","abstract_html":"<p>Nazism redefined gender and sexual politics for society during the twentieth century, which determined the trajectory of male homosexuality under the Third Reich. While the party did not actively promote homosexuality, early Nazism valued hypermasculinity and homosocial relationships. Right-wing veterans of the First World War were attracted to the Nazi paramilitary unit, Sturmabteilung (SA), led by Ernst Röhm, a well-known gay man. The SA leaders promoted close male bonds among the members, which led to homoerotic relationships. If homoerotism was permitted within the early Nazi Party, why was there a steady decline in the treatment of gay men under the Third Reich? Based on personal narratives, memoirs, and official documents, this study demonstrates that the party became increasingly violent against gay German men because Heinrich Himmler, leader of the paramilitary group Schutzstaffel (SS), was obsessed with controlling sexuality to advance the Aryan race.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Bhatt, Goral"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts (MA)","degree_level":"Open Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"History and Philosophy","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Jesse Kauffman, PhD","John McCurdy, PhD","Mary-Elizabeth Murphy, PhD"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2021,"date_issued":"2021-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2021-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:40Z","subjects":["European History","Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1096","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Jesse Kauffman, PhD","John McCurdy, PhD","Mary-Elizabeth Murphy, PhD"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Bhatt, Goral"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2021-10-08T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History and Philosophy"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["European History","Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1096"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Nazism redefined gender and sexual politics for society during the twentieth century, which determined the trajectory of male homosexuality under the Third Reich. While the party did not actively promote homosexuality, early Nazism valued hypermasculinity and homosocial relationships. Right-wing veterans of the First World War were attracted to the Nazi paramilitary unit, Sturmabteilung (SA), led by Ernst Röhm, a well-known gay man. The SA leaders promoted close male bonds among the members, which led to homoerotic relationships. If homoerotism was permitted within the early Nazi Party, why was there a steady decline in the treatment of gay men under the Third Reich? Based on personal narratives, memoirs, and official documents, this study demonstrates that the party became increasingly violent against gay German men because Heinrich Himmler, leader of the paramilitary group Schutzstaffel (SS), was obsessed with controlling sexuality to advance the Aryan race.
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