Last known gay survivor of Nazi concentration camps dies
Thu. August 4, 2011 7:38 PM by GoPride.com News Staff
rudolf brazda
photo credit // gerard bohrer
Bantzenheim, France -
Rudolf Brazda, the last known gay survivor of the Nazi concentration camps, passed away in France this week at age 98.
Brazda was born in 1913 in Germany and records show he lived a happy life with a partner named Werner in the 1930's.
Werner was enlisted in 1936 and Brazda was eventually persecuted under anti-gay Nazi rules. After spending time in prison, he was expelled to Czechoslovakia, where he met a new partner, Anton.
Unfortunately, a year later that part of Czechoslovakia was annexed by the Germans and Brazda's associations with other gay men led to his arrest.
He was sent to Buchenwald in August 1942 and remained there until the camp's liberation in 1945.
While there, his uniform was marked with the pink triangle that is the symbol of the gay movement today.
Brazda died peacefully at a rest home in France on August 3, 2011 at the age of 98. His life partner, Edi, with whom he shared 30 years, preceded him in death in 2003.
Brazda was born in 1913 in Germany and records show he lived a happy life with a partner named Werner in the 1930's.
Werner was enlisted in 1936 and Brazda was eventually persecuted under anti-gay Nazi rules. After spending time in prison, he was expelled to Czechoslovakia, where he met a new partner, Anton.
Unfortunately, a year later that part of Czechoslovakia was annexed by the Germans and Brazda's associations with other gay men led to his arrest.
He was sent to Buchenwald in August 1942 and remained there until the camp's liberation in 1945.
While there, his uniform was marked with the pink triangle that is the symbol of the gay movement today.
Brazda died peacefully at a rest home in France on August 3, 2011 at the age of 98. His life partner, Edi, with whom he shared 30 years, preceded him in death in 2003.