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Dustin Luca
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SALEM, MASS. – From the Holocaust to modern day, Germany has seen a remarkable evolution to become a lauded leader in LGBTQ rights. Two events at Salem State University will explore the country’s history in this realm and how to cover it in the classroom.
On Thursday, March 6, Salem State’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies will host Samuel Clowes Huneke, an associate professor of history at George Mason University, for a lecture titled “Queer Activism in Cold War Germany.”
The following day, Huneke will join Salem State professors Bethany Jay and Christopher Mauriello, and Jake Newsome, author of the Pink Triangle Legacies Project, for an educator workshop titled “Teaching the History of Queer People and Communities Before, During and After the Holocaust.”
“Given the increased attention on LGBTQ issues in our own nation, professor Huneke’s lecture is both timely and important,” said Mauriello, director of Salem State’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies. “While his focus is on queer activism in Cold War Germany, I imagine we will recognize some familiar themes, ideas and language that continue to dominate our own public culture and politics.”
Often overlooked in teaching the history of the Holocaust, the Nazis ruthlessly persecuted, incarcerated, and murdered thousands of gay, lesbian and transgender individuals between 1933-1945 as dangerous “asocials” and enemies of the state. Working with expert scholars and education facilitators, teachers attending Friday’s workshop will learn this history, develop effective pedagogy to teach it in age-appropriate ways and be given resources to use with their students.
“In this way,” Mauriello said, “our regional educators will gain a deeper understanding of Nazi persecution of these groups, expand our understanding and teaching of the Holocaust and meet the state mandate for teaching comparative genocide.”
Huneke’s lecture on Thursday is the 2025 Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies Sonia Schreiber Weitz Series lecture and begins at 7 pm, in the Recital Hall at the Classroom Building on Harrington Campus. View more information and register to attend in-person or remotely via Zoom.
Friday’s educator workshop will be held from 9 am-2:30 pm in the Petrowski Room at Marshall Hall on Harrington Campus. Please visit this link for more on Friday's educator’s workshop.