Queer Ancestor Spotlight - Homomonument
The Homomonument is the first monument in the world to commemorate those in the LGBTQ+ community who were killed by the Nazis, and has since become a symbol for everyone who has been persecuted because of their sexual orientation.
Photo by Geert-Jan Edelenbosch, 16 October 2015
The Homomonument opened on September 5, 1987. The monument sits on the bank of the Keizersgracht canal and is made of three large pink triangles made of granite, which are arrayed to form a larger triangle. In addition to being a permanent space of reflection and remembrance the monument is also actively incorporated into two annual celebrations: Remembrance Day and Liberation Day. On Remembrance Day (May 4th) wreaths are laid on the monument to remember LGBTQ+ victims of persecution. The following day, Liberation Day, sees the monument transformed into the site of a vibrant street party.
The idea of creating a space to memorialize the LGBTQ+ victims of World War II sprang out of the beginning of the Dutch gay rights movement. A galvanizing moment occurred in 1970 when gay activists laid a wreath at the National Monument to the Victims of World War II. The activists were arrested and the wreath removed, with police saying it insulted the memory of the dead. The ensuing anger in the Dutch LGBTQ+ community lead to additional wreath-placing demonstrations and a more aggressive push to include the LGBTQ+ community in the public’s collective memory of those who fell victim to the Nazis.
The Homomonument Foundation was formed in 1979 and took inspiration from a recently opened monument in Amsterdam dedicated to the Romani victims of Nazi genocide. In 1980 the Foundation solicited designs and after reviewing 137 submissions selected the one proposed by Karin Daan. It took another seven years for construction to begin while many political and public figures criticized the creation of a space memorializing homosexuality. Construction began on April 28, 1987 and concluded with an opening ceremony on September 5th. At it’s opening, the Homomonument was the first LGBTQ+ monument in the world.
Learn more about the Homomonument here:
Homomonument Amsterdam - The Homomonument Website
Homomonument - GLBTQ - an encyclopedia of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender & queer culture (Web Archive)
Homomonument - Atlas Obscura
Homomonument: The Importance of a Representative Space in the City - ArchDaily
How the Nazi Regime’s Pink Triangle Symbol Was Repurposed for LGBTQ Pride - Time Magazine
