With approximately 300,000 homosexuals living in Berlin, the German capital ranks as the third largest gay metropolis in all of Europe, with only London and Amsterdam boasting greater numbers. Long gone are the days when gay and lesbian life was tucked away in the catacombs of Berlin subculture. For many years now, this thriving, dynamic and diverse scene has greatly contributed to and enriched the city's vitality. There is a plethora of activities, services and institutions in Berlin specifically designed by and for gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, transsexuals, drag queens, drag kings etc. This includes 150 gay bars as well as a gay bar owners' union, two free city magazines, a broad spectrum of publishing houses and bookstores, pharmacies, sports clubs, same sex dance lessons and studios, language courses, specialty outfit boutiques, even a gay French fry kiosk, radio broadcasts focusing on gay related topics, the TEDDY film award, countless organizations, meeting places, counselling services, associations and other resources.

Berlin continues to live up to its historical role as a magnet for gay men and lesbians who have left the places they grew up in for fear of stigmatization, because they have fallen in love or to take advantage of all that urban life has to offer.
The history of the publicly recognized gay and lesbian movement in Berlin goes back more than 100 years and is closely linked to the name Magnus Hirschfeld, an equal rights crusader who also fought to put an end to the criminal persecution of homosexuals under the infamous § 175. In 1919, Magnus Hirschfeld founded The Institute for Sexology, which pursued both informative and political objectives and sought to achieve sexual reform and the decriminalization of homosexuality by means of scientific arguments. The institute was shut down in 1933 and many of the works contained in its library were destroyed at a public book burning that took place in front of the opera house at Opernplatz, known today as Bebelplatz.
Homosexuality and androgyny were an intrinsic part of the zeitgeist of the "roaring twenties" as reflected in a vast number of periodicals, books and in the more serious films of the era. Schöneberg became a hot spot for recreational and leisure activities, filled with dance halls, artists' salons and seedier haunts where all creative minds, homo and heterosexual alike, could gather and exchange ideas. Gay writers W.H. Auden and Christopher Isherwood soaked up as much as they could of late 1920s nightlife with everything it had to offer. Isherwood worked his own Berlin experiences into his novels Mr. Norris changes Trains and Goodbye to Berlin, the latter of which served as the basis for the 1970s hit-film Cabaret. In the poems written during his Berlin period, Auden does not really describe the city itself, but allusions can be found to the increasingly volatile political situation. A great wave of discrimination swept over the nation once the National Socialists came to power. Homosexual bars and cafés were shut down and gay men, lesbians and bisexuals were deported or simply murdered. Only a small handful of people managed to flee into exile; among them was Klaus Mann.

After the Second World War, during the Adenauer administration's restrictive restoration period, homosexuals continued to be persecuted as criminals. However, in the eastern part of the city the paragraph forbidding same sex intercourse was altered in 1950 and in 1968 homosexuality among consenting adults was legalized.
An international landmark event took place the subsequent year when the patrons of Stonewall, a small gay bar on New York's Christopher Street staged the first ever, mass resistance against a police raid. The annual gay pride parades that ensued have offshoots here in Berlin, including the German CSD parade and the Berlin gay and lesbian street festival. Riding on the wings of the general political and socially critical activism of the early 70s, common interest groups and a few close-knit communities began to form - all of which were mostly comprised of gay men. In East Berlin, where the scene took up residence in Prenzlauer Berg, the society "Homosexuelle Interessengemeinschaft Berlin" (The Berlin Homosexual Common Interest Group) was founded. Its meetings were first held in secret at the home of prominent transvestite Charlotte von Mahlsdorf. The progression of the gay and lesbian equal rights movement is revealed by films such as Rosa von Praunheim's Nicht der Homosexuelle ist pervers, sondern die Situation in der er lebt (It's not the Homosexual who is Perverse, but the Situation in which he Lives). At about the same time, gay and lesbian cafés, bars, publishing houses and bookstores began to pop up. In 1983, The German AIDS Foundation (Deutsche AIDS-Hilfe) was founded and has ever since been active in representing the interests of those infected with HIV and AIDS patients, as well as in educating people on AIDS prevention. The organization, which had its humble start in Berlin, today has a total of 130 local branches throughout Germany. In 1997, the gay movement celebrated its 100th anniversary. A major point of criticism voiced by lesbians was that the festivities took place without lesbian participation.
Berlin has arrived in the new millennium. It boasts a decentralized gay and lesbian scene that is by no means homogenous. It is a stage for romance, lovers' quarrels and reconciliation where everyone can follow their unique path, and seek and find their own identity.

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