The Röhm scandal was the public disclosure of the homosexuality of Nazi
politician Ernst Röhm (pictured) by the Social Democratic Party of
Germany (SPD). It began in April 1931, when the SPD newspaper
Münchener Post published a series of front-page stories inaccurately
portraying the Nazi Party as dominated by homosexuals. During the 1932
German presidential election, the SPD released a pamphlet edited by the
ex-Nazi Helmuth Klotz with letters in which Röhm had discussed his
homosexuality. On 12 May 1932, Klotz was beaten by Nazi deputies in the
Reichstag building in revenge for his publication of the pamphlet,
bringing the matter to national attention, and making Röhm the world's
first openly gay politician. The Nazis' electoral performance was not
affected by the scandal. Hitler defended Röhm, but had him murdered in
1934, citing both his homosexuality and alleged treachery. This purge
began the systematic persecution of homosexual men in Nazi Germany.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%B6hm_scandal>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1279:
The Livonian branch of the Teutonic Order suffered a great loss
when 71 knights died in the Battle of Aizkraukle.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Aizkraukle>
1824:
The First Anglo-Burmese War, the longest and most expensive war
in British Indian history, began.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Anglo-Burmese_War>
1966:
BOAC Flight 911 disintegrated and crashed near Mount Fuji
shortly after departure from Tokyo International Airport, killing all
113 passengers and 11 crew members on board.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BOAC_Flight_911>
1975:
Computer hobbyists in Silicon Valley held the first meeting of
the Homebrew Computer Club (founder pictured), whose members went on to
have great influence on the development of the personal computer.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homebrew_Computer_Club>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
dekulakize:
(transitive, historical) Usually with reference to the Soviet Union and
communist Eastern Europe: to dispossess (a kulak, that is, a prosperous
peasant) of his or her property and/or rights.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dekulakize>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Of all the consequences of Moscow’s unprovoked attack, one of
the most unexpected is the spark it has lit in people around the world
who have come out to demonstrate for freedom, for the rights of
Ukrainians. That includes valiant individuals in places where
protesting the Kremlin’s war means risking arrest, beatings, or worse,
as thousands of Russians and Belarusians have done. For years, we’ve
seen the dangerous tide rolling back democracy and human rights and
undercutting the rules-based order, fueled in no small part by Moscow.
With this brutal invasion, we, our European allies and partners, and
people everywhere are being reminded of just how much is at stake. Now,
we see the tide of democracy rising to the moment.
--Antony Blinken
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Antony_Blinken>