The term "gender" entered the field of Holocaust Studies in the 1980s. Feminist scholars pulled women to the center, bringing fresh perspectives and expanding knowledge of who carried out the Holocaust and its impact. Eventually, feminist approaches opened the field to everyday history, micro-histories, views of children and family life, and explorations of sexuality and sex-based violence. The term "gender" became conflated with "women" and men came to be seen not only as the norm against which women's experiences were measured, but also as historical subjects who had neither gendered experiences nor individual agency.

In the past decade, Holocaust gender studies have blossomed with research on the masculinities and femininities of an array of historical actors, of sexualized violence, and of the sexuality of different groups and individuals, resulting in more nuanced engagement with this complex history. The newest scholarship explores the masculinity of Jewish men and brings a critical men's studies perspective to bear, making visible what has been veiled by the presumed "normative" behavior and motivations of men.

Discussions of Holocaust masculinities and femininities together are infrequent. The experiences of men and women victims during the Holocaust have been explored and compared, but only rarely has gender as a tool of analysis sat at the center of these discussions. This panel will bring these conversations together through a renewed look at the experiences of men and women imprisoned in Auschwitz. Previous comparative studies have centered on coping strategies and resulted in assertions about the relative "efficacy" of gendered strategies with regard to solidarity and survival. Here, we move away from such assertions and train our gaze on the lived gendered experiences of men and women incarcerated in Auschwitz. This is particularly fruitful territory considering that Nazi dehumanization of prisoners included eliminating markers of gender. Performing gender signified not only increased status in the prisoner hierarchy, but also a potential resistance.

Cushman analyzes sexual violence and sexual agency in the women's camp illustrating opportunities and constraints on women's choices. Pine re-evaluates male survivor testimonies, interrogating men's words, deeds and behaviour under extreme conditions that reflected and deviated from expected gender norms. Sommer shows how for men sex, ranging from consensual to outright assault, became a status symbol and a marker of power.

Audience will include Holocaust historians and those interested in Gender and Genocide.