Last Gay Holocaust Survivor Dies

We're gonna a minute out of our normally irreverent programming to bid farewell to 98-year-old Rudolf Brazda, the last known gay survivor of the Holocaust, who passed away last Wednesday.  Brazda was one of 10,000 gay deportees that the Nazis rounded up because of their threat to the perpetuation of the human race.  He survived 32 months in a concentration camp and his cremated remains have been placed next to those of his partner of 50 years who passed away in 2003.  For those who may not know, gay survivors of the Holocaust are often referred to as Pink Triangles because of the identifying patch they were forced to wear in the camps.

We spend so much time talking about post-Stonewall life that it can be easy to forget that 80 years ago being gay meant so much more than not having the right to marry.  [via Washington Post]