Transgender Activism in Germany and Its Suppression by the Nazis

In early 20th century Germany, Berlin was a center for sexual reform and research. Dr. Magnus Hirschfeld (1868–1935), physician and sexologist, a German Jewish doctor, founded the Institute for Sexual Science (Institut für Sexualwissenschaft) in 1919. The institute researched homosexuality, transgender identities, and sexology. Hirschfeld coined terms such as “transvestite” and promoted medical and social recognition for transgender people, lobbying for legal reform, providing medical support, and publishing research.

When the Nazi Party came to power in 1933, they targeted the institute. On May 6, 1933, the Institute for Sexual Science was raided and destroyed; books, research, and records were burned. Laws criminalizing homosexual behavior were enforced more strictly. Medical care and activism for transgender individuals were banned. Hirschfeld fled Germany and died in exile in France in 1935. Public discussion and visibility of transgender people were suppressed during the Nazi era.