Introduction

 

• Attention getter: Between 1933 and 1945 approximately 100,000 gay men were arrested during Hitler’s regime and 15,00 of those were placed into concentration camps where they were forced to wear pink triangles to “brand” them. Only 35% of those men came out with their lives. 

 

1. Topic: The pink triangle that was part of the Nazi’s effort to bring down the prisoner’s moral but soon after was transformed into a symbol of pride during the  “Homosexuelle Aktion Wetberlin” pride organization
2. Hook: Something along the lines of “even though yes, great strides have been made towards improving LGBT rights, there is still so much violence against the community” 
   1. Such as the lesbians who were assaulted on the subway by a couple of men because they wouldn’t kiss for them
3. Establishing Credibility: I’ve had so many friends affected directly by violence against the LGBT community so knowing about where it stems from has always been something that interested me because I always believe that if you know about the past, you can use that knowledge to change things in the future
4. Thesis: 
   1. The use of the pink triangle as a symbol of pride set a precedent for the other groups that had been oppressed during Hitler’s regime that they didn’t have to be ashamed of the identity that they had to hide but they should wear it (quite literally) as a symbol of pride
5. Preview: In this speech, I will be discussing the Kairos, the pathos, and ethos that were employed during HAW that made the use of Hitler’s branding of gay men an effective pride symbol that is still used to this day. 

 

Transition

1. Body – First Point – kairos
   1. What – because they decided to hold HAW directly after most gay men from prison, the timing was extremely powerful for many of those men who had been forced to wear those triangles for entirely different reasons
   2. So What? –  
      1. HAW itself was a symbol of freedom and liberation for this very reason and holding it so shortly after the release of so many prisoners feels like “no matter how long you imprison us or try to change who we are, you will never achieve your goals”.  
      2. The organizers probably hoped that the newly liberated men would associate the symbol with this newfound freedom rather than the feeling of incarceration
   3. Now what? – well since now I’ve analyzed why they decided to use the triangle when they did, it’s only appropriate to move onto what the triangle meant to the ones who saw it at the organization 

 

Transition

1. Body – Second Point – pAtHos
   1. What – well obviously there was a lot of emotion that went into making the decision of using the triangle to show pride
   2. So What? – Using the pink triangle after the holocaust had ended and while all that pain and suffering that everyone had endured was still fresh in their minds was a powerful tool that helped rally support for HAW’s organizers…. The audience that the organizers were trying to reach with the usage of the pink triangle as their logo was everyone who was affected by the demeaning label that those inverted triangles placed upon those who were forced to wear them. This didn’t just include homosexual men that bore the pink triangle, but all the other oppressed groups that were also forced to wear their identities as symbols of shame. (From RCL blog post)
   3. Now What? – well basically what do these two points mean as a whole, I’d consolidate them into one big point (not a conclusion just yet, but more like a: this is what happened post all of this and why it happened kind of a deal)

 

Transition 

1. Body – Third Point –
   1. What –  the fact that homosexual men in Germany were able to rebrand the triangle for their own made way for other oppressed groups to rebrand their “own triangles” ig
   2. So What? – it showed that once a precedent had been set, anyone could follow it, and anyone (namely any of the oppressed groups from Hitler’s regime) could transform their suffering into strength
   3. Now What? – there wouldn’t really be a now what cause it’s right before the conclusion

Transition

 

Conclusion

1. Clear Signal of the Ending 
   1. To summarize, in conclusion, etc. (just pick one at some point)
2. Recap of Conclusions Made in Points
   1. Using the pink triangle in the “first official” pride organization, especially with the Holocaust and the effects of it still so clear in people’s minds was an extremely effective tactic
      1. Elaborate on that obviously once you’ve written out your actual points 🙂
3. End with a Bang
   1. Say something about how yes, while we have made great strides since HAW in 1973, especially with marriage equality, there are still too many risks that the LGBT community have to worry about on a daily basis, especially with our current president