Donald Trump has clearly expressed his views towards the LGBTQ+ community. Following his White House takeover, he has been giving extra attention to establishing “only two sexes” policies in various sectors. From signing numerous executive orders to ban transgenders from women’s sports, reinstating the military ban, and eliminating DEI initiatives to openly voice against the community, his anti-LGBTQ+ views are extremely evident.
However, in his recent post, the U.S. President made it clearer by sharing something deemed a Nazi symbol. Given his latest moves, his anti-LGBTQ+ post wasn’t too surprising, but reposting something that clearly features a Nazi symbol, seemingly speaks volumes about his ideology.
On his Truth Social, Trump reposted an article from the Washington Times opinion section. It is titled “Army recruitment ads look quite different under Trump,” indicating his latest policy. The article actually defends his message while describing the new ads as prioritizing “lethality” over “Biden-era restrictions.” This means that the Trump-era military policy wants to advertise with a soldier deadlifting 500 lbs instead of marching in the Pride parade as the former Democrat President prioritized.
While the controversial article definitely garnered some buzz, the crossed-out Pink Triangle, featured as the main image, became the center of debate and discussion. This symbol was used as a badge by the Nazis to identify gay men during the Holocaust. It was similar to how Jews were labeled with yellow stars in concentration camps. According to survivors, many of these gay men suffered horrible abuses at these camps.
History.com reports, there were 100,000 estimated gay men were arrested under the Nazi regime. About 5,000 to 15,000 of these men were kept in camps, and at least 65 percent of them passed away between 1933 and 1945. Even after World War II, many of these gay men remained imprisoned as laws against them persisted.
trump posted a crossed out PINK TRIANGLE.
do you know what the pink triangle symbolizes, historically? pink triangles were what NAZIS used to categorize queer people. and at the end of the war, they freed everyone— except people that had a pink triangle. pic.twitter.com/Ylj1O2qa5q
— hannah misses b (@mightnotbeaIone) March 10, 2025
In the next half of the century, the LGBTQ+ community began reclaiming the Pink Triangle, but for a reverse message. The symbol served as a great reminder of the horrid past and those who lived through it. The triangle was also used notably during the AIDS advocacy movement and ACT UP’s “Silence=Death” campaign.
Given the history and the context of the Nazi symbol, many people were shocked to see Donald Trump openly reposting it with crossed out in red. Especially the LGBTQ+ community found it extremely unsettling, with many commenting that they are now terrified more than ever. Whether the President was aware of its association with the Nazi regime or not, his decision to share it has created quite a buzz. “There’s no defending this so wake the f–k up,” one X (formerly Twitter) user wrote. “This is very alarming that he would repost something like this,” another wrote. “This is very alarming that he would repost something like this,” the other person wrote.
Been trying to avoid political shit but people need to know that Trump is legit sharing Nazi symbolism here. The Pink Triangle was used by Nazi Germany to identify homosexual men being held prisoner in concentration camps. There’s no defending this so wake the fuck up. pic.twitter.com/fGzL9ngSGq
— Angelo (@BoyChanel) March 12, 2025
On Truth Social, one user lamented, “Well this isn’t terrifying to see the President of the United States posting Nazi imagery…….. Of course the MAGA crowd is okay with the silent dog whistle because most of them don’t know what an upside down purple triangle means because they’ve never been outside of the country or read a history book.” When someone tried to defend Trump by saying that the image was included in the article and he only reposted it, one person fired back, “oh you’re right. he only SHARED the anti lgbtq stance article with blatant nazi imagery. that’s much better, my mistake!”
“This is f—— terrifying. There’s no more hiding their ideology,” another person simply concluded on Instagram.
Whether the President was aware of its history or not, the crossed-out inverted Pink Triangle definitely speaks volumes about his stance, especially when it comes to the LGBTQ+ community.
