Threatened Desire — Queer Life in Divided Berlin, 1945 — 1970

When it comes to what the Berlin Wall divided, one aspect has been neglected in the culture of remembrance: The Wall also tore Berlin’s queer community apart, separating queer couples and friendships. After all, even in the 1950s and 1960s, Berlin was a city where many queer people lived—in both East and West. There were queer bars and pubs and a queer everyday life, but also repression and criminal prosecution. The Berlin Wall severed cross-border contacts and spaces.