Berlin: The gay districts: Schöneberg – The Gay Triangle at Nollendorf Platz

At the intersection of U-Bahn lines 1, 2 and 4 is Nollendorfplatz.
In the days of the Weimar Republic in the 20's and early 30's it was the hub of the fashionable gay and lesbian community in Berlin. It was in a room at Nollendorfstr. 17 that renowned pre-war author Christopher Isherwood wrote of the city. The liberal environment in Berlin at that time allowed people to be proud of their sexuality and this was reflected in the number of gay cafés, nightclubs and brothels, with theatre pieces and art often dealing with homosexual themes.
With the rise to power of the Nazis, the "undesirable" elements in society were forced to categorise themselves with pink and black triangles. Social ostracism was only the first step in a larger plan, and many thousands were taken to concentration camps and, more often that not, murdered. A red granite triangle plaque at Nollendorfplatz U-Bahnhof commemorates the gay and lesbian victims of the Nazi era.