LSBTTIQ in Baden and Württemberg

The internet portal www.lsbttiq-bw.de is financed by Baden-Württemberg’s state government and offers a unique glimpse into this little-known aspect of Baden-Württemberg’s history. The portal was created by the University of Stuttgart’s History Department, the Federal Foundation Magnus Hirschfeld in Berlin and the Institute of Contemporary History Munich/Berlin. The internet portal is overseen by the Public History Team from the Department of Recent History at the University of Stuttgart.

Interactive Exchanges are Welcome
The internet portal sees itself as an information and communication platform for the entire population. It offers an overview of the history of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgender, intersex and queer people in Baden, Württemberg and Hohenzollern; presenting exemplary source materials and explaining important terminology. Regular blog entries investigate various modern and historical aspects relating to this diverse topic and establish connections between these. A key concern of the portal is to provide a platform for interactive exchanges. Many users have already made suggestions and given tips, which have resulted in new research projects, archival finds and blog entries. Users can also provide information about contemporary witnesses, provide more in-depth information, submit source materials or engage in the discussions using the comments function.

Interviews with Contemporary Witnesses
The interviews with contemporary witnesses from Baden-Württemberg provide particularly moving accounts of various events. Three men, one woman and the daughter of a transgender person aged from 70 to 92 provide vivid accounts of their lives, including not only reports of discrimination and ostracism, but also tales of self-confidence and happiness. These also show that the interviewees have helped to shape the state’s history and are continuing to do so even today:

• „Ja, ihr dürft heute heiraten, ich bin noch im Gefängnis gesessen“
  Heinz Schmitz, *1943 in Freiburg

• „... dass in Zukunft Pässe ausgestellt werden können mit zwei Geschlechtern“
  Juliane Ernst, *1941 in Hof, über ihren Vater Karl, ab 1976 Kerstin Thieme, *1909 in Niederschlema/Erzgebirge

• „... dass ich nicht einsehe, warum ich net ´s gleiche Recht habe wie andere“
  Herta Leistner, *1942 in Altensteig/Schwarzwald

• „... ich war halt so, und so wie´s isch, so isch´s ...“
  Richard Moosdorf, *1924 in Stuttgart

• „... i hab au nie irgendwie groß a Doppelleben geführt, und des möcht i au net…“
  Helmut Kress, *1946 in Tübingen

Please use the Invitation to Participate: Please provide information about where you have met lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgender and queer people from Baden-Württemberg, to send documents that record cases of persecution and discrimination – become an active part of recording Baden-Württemberg’s history.

Invitation to Participate