Sterilization, castration, imprisonment, and deportation to concentration camps were among the methods utilized. Adolf Hitler’s regime overturned all previous attempts in Germany to decriminalize same-sex acts, to challenge bigoted stereotypes about homosexuality, and to create establishments where these men could live and socialize openly. The Nazi dictatorship policed, prosecuted, and ultimately murdered thousands of gay men during its 12 years of rule. Credit: National Archives and Records Administration.