'Scapegoat'
'Scapegoat' examines the use of queer-scapegoatism as a means to artificially reinstate hegemonic dominance and distract from internal civil power fractures. In particular referencing the history of the pink triangle and its use on queer people.
The concept of the ‘scapegoat’ derives from the goat referenced in ancient Jewish rituals wherein the sins of the community were symbolically transferred to the goat, which was exiled into the wilderness carrying with it the sins of the people.
Whilst more literally describing the unfair blaming of a person or group for problems, issues or failures that they are not in themselves responsible for. In a broader context, the practice is often employed as a means of diverting attention away from true responsibility or wider social tyranny; menacing an othered community to bear the weight of faults in order to subvert wider social instability. Historically, various hegemonies can be countlessly evidenced as scapegoating minority communities to protect their own agenda and following, creating discrimination and prejudice as a collateral byproduct of their continual dominance over society. Power becomes a shadowed stage where blame takes fight.
Beneath this masked truth lies authentic narrative. Unearthing this knowledge gives justice to the identities and experiences of those once laboured with false hatred and prejudice as a result of inauthentic blame and misinformation. Familiarising ourselves with past instances of scapegoatism can better our capacity in recognising it in the present. May it empower ourselves to challenge the shadows where prejudice is sewn.
Grafting the narrative of the scapegoat back onto the centralised narrative is an attempt to write truth back onto the records. Noting the existence of the [pink] triangle as an integral, inbuilt element of the central narrative, ‘Scapegoat’ attempts to contextualise the record, highlighting the pink triangles prejudice as a result of wider oppression.
We must be continuously aware that “separating these strands from wider histories is very problematic.” (M. Cook).
In comprehending hegemonies, it is crucial we remain open to the consideration of what other power structures may have been at play. The enforcement of one prejudice from one people onto another may not have been an honest expression of integrity, or moral principle, but a deflective and engineered distraction from wider tyranny.
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During the rise of the Nazi regime, LGBTQ+ individuals faced intense persecution alongside other marginalised communities as part of the broader oppression performed as part of the spread of Nazi ideology. The Nazi’s propagated the idea that homosexuality was a threat to the purity and strength of the Aryan race; a heterosexual and patriarchal society. They saw queers as “degenerates” and a threat to the reproductive goals of the nation.
The “Institute for Sexual Research '' in Berlin, founded in 1919, was a renowned centre for LGBTQ+ study, sexual education and advocacy. It played a significant role in advancing understandings and acceptance of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities throughout the early 20th century. The institute became under attack by the Nazi’s, who saw its research as antithetical to their vision of a homogenous and radically ‘pure’ society. The institute was ransacked in 1933 bringing destruction to its entire material archive. The act was part of the regime's strategy to erase all LGBTQ+ knowledge and identities from public discourse whilst scapegoating the queer community to advance their far-reaching oppressive agenda.
Manipulating social anxieties regarding traditional gender roles and familial structures, queerness was strategically framed as a deviation that could undermine the vision of a strong, united society. This vilification of queer communities was used as a psychological mechanism for the Nazis to redirect public attention from their oppressive measures, economic challenges and other societal issues. They aimed to foster a sense of unity against a ‘common enemy’. They presented themselves as the protectors of a traditional and morally righteous society.
The persecution of LGBTQ+ individuals in Nazi Germany exemplifies how marginalised communities can be used as scapegoats to fulfil broader ideological and political agendas. This dark chapter in history sheds light on the dangers of demonising and blaming specific groups for societal challenges, ultimately perpetuating discrimination and injustice.
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2023
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