Red triangle (badge)

Opponents of the Nazi Party

Background to Nazi persecution of left-wing opponents

The colour of the symbol comes from the party colours of the Communist Party of Germany, one of the first groups to be detained in the Nazi concentration camps. Nazi crackdowns on their left wing political enemies started very early. As depicted in the famous poem, First They Came by Martin Niemöller, a German priest. It begins, "When the Nazis came for the communists, I kept quiet; I wasn't a communist" (German: Als die Nazis die Kommunisten holten). The most common English version begins, "First they came for the Communists". In a 2024 article about the origins of the red triangle symbol, Germany's public broadcaster Deutsche Welle reported, "At first, the majority of political inmates were German Social Democrats or Communists and the red of the triangle referred to their party colors.. most were non-Germans from across the political spectrum who had opposed National Socialism or Nazi Germany's occupation of their countries".

The red triangle badge in Nazi concentration camps

A red inverted triangle was worn by political prisoners in Nazi concentration camps. The red triangle was only used for Jewish prisoners in unusual circumstances, such as when the Nazi authorities in the prison were unaware that the prisoner was Jewish.

German communists were among the first to be imprisoned in concentration camps. Their ties to the USSR concerned Hitler, and the Nazi Party was intractably opposed to communism. Rumors of communist violence were spread by the Nazis to justify the Enabling Act of 1933, which gave Hitler his first dictatorial powers. Hermann Göring testified at Nuremberg that Nazi willingness to repress German Communists prompted Hindenburg and the old elite to cooperate with them. Hitler and the Nazis also despised German leftists because of their resistance to Nazi racism. Hitler referred to Marxism and "Bolshevism" as means for "the international Jew" to undermine "racial purity", stir up class tension and mobilise trade unions against the government and business. When the Nazis occupied a territory, communists, socialists and anarchists were usually among the first to be repressed; this included summary executions. An example is Hitler's Commissar Order, in which he demanded the summary execution of all Soviet troops who were political commissars who offered resistance or were captured in battle.

Many red triangle wearers were interned at Dachau concentration camp. The triangle and star system was used at the Dachau concentration camp from 1938 to 1942.

According to the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oświęcim, Poland, 95% of prisoners at Auschwitz concentration camp were accused of political crimes.

Later this expanded and many political detainees were German and foreign civilian activists from across the political spectrum who opposed the Nazi regime, captured resistances fighters (many of whom were executed during—or immediately after—their interrogation, particularly in occupied Poland and France) and, sometimes, their families. German political prisoners were a substantial proportion of the first inmates at Dachau (the prototypical Nazi concentration camp). The political People's Court was notorious for the number of its death sentences.

Schematics of prisoner badge symbols in Nazi concentration camps

After WWII

Since the end of World War II the red triangle has been used as an anti-fascist symbol. The pink triangle and red triangle were both reclaimed after the war as symbols of pride and remembrance.

Association of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime – Federation of Antifascists

The Association of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime – Federation of Antifascists (German: Vereinigung der Verfolgten des Naziregimes – Bund der Antifaschistinnen und Antifaschisten, VVN-BdA) is a German political confederation founded in 1947 and based in Berlin. The VVN-BdA, formerly the VVN, emerged from victims' associations in Germany founded by political opponents to Nazism after the Second World War and the end of the Nazi rule in Germany.

With the end of World War II, self-help groups of former resistance fighters were founded in "anti-fascist committees", known as "Antifas", involving working class militants, in particular but not only Communists which were banned immediately by the military administrations of each of the British and American occupation zones for being far politically left. By June 26, 1945, an "association of political prisoners and persecutees of the Nazi system" had been founded in Stuttgart, and in the following weeks and months, there were regional groups of ex-political prisoners and other persecuted individuals formed with the permission of the allied forces, in each of the four occupation zones.

The group are critical of far-right politicians in Germany and abroad. In 2025, the group claimed that, "The weakening of universities has long been a declared goal of the US right".

Use in East Germany (Deutsche Demokratische Republik)

From 1975 onwards, the Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR, also known as East Germany) released a medal for the "Committee of Antifascist Resistance Fighters" (KdAW, German: Komitee der Antifaschistischen Widerstandskämpfer) of the GDR that included a red triangle. The Committee of Antifascist Resistance Fighters (KdAW) was formed in 1953. Practically speaking, it functioned as the East German counterpart of the Union of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime (Vereinigung der Verfolgten des Naziregimes). The KdAW enjoyed a close relationship with the Socialist Unity Party, although it was not a member of the National Front. The organisation played an important role in the commemoration of German resistance to Nazism and The Holocaust in East Germany. East Germany used such commemorative functions to emphasise the anti-fascist orientation of the state. Membership in the KdAW served as a means of accessing benefits. For instance, membership made one eligible to receive the Medal for Fighters Against Fascism. It also contained a number of working groups, which brought people with similar backgrounds together. The most prominent of these were groups for survivors of various concentration camps and prisons; for example, one existed for former prisoners of Brandenburg-Görden Prison. Another working group was formed for veterans of the International Brigades of the Spanish Civil War.

The red triangle on memorials

In addition to the Association of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime – Federation of Antifascists (VVN-BdA) memorials above, the red triangle also features on numerous other war memorials in Europe. War memorials featuring the red triangle symbol exist in Germany and in areas of Europe that were occupied by Germany during World War Two.

Service medals

Service medals awarded to prisoners of war and other camp inmates after WWII feature the triangle that was used on prisoners' uniforms. The Auschwitz Cross, a Polish medal for camp victims and the Political Prisoner's Cross 1940–1945, a Belgian medal both show a red triangle with a nationality indicator, and the ribbons replicate the striped fabric of some camp uniforms.

The Political Prisoner's Cross 1940–1945 (French: Croix du Prisonnier Politique 1940–1945, Dutch: Politieke Gevangenkruis 1940–1945) was a Belgian war medal established by royal decree of the Regent on 13 November 1947 and awarded to Belgian citizens arrested and interned by the Germans as political prisoners during the Second World War. The award's statute included provisions for posthumous award should the intended recipient not survive detention, and the right of the widow, the mother or the father of the deceased to wear the cross.

The Auschwitz Cross (Polish: Krzyż Oświęcimski), instituted on 14 March 1985, was a Polish decoration awarded to honour survivors of Nazi German concentration camps, including Auschwitz. Auschwitz is a German name for the Polish town Oświęcim, where a complex of concentration camps was built by Nazi Germany during the German occupation of Europe during WWII. It was awarded generally to Poles, but it was possible to award it to foreigners in special cases. It could be awarded posthumously. It ceased to be awarded in 1999. An exception was made in the case of Greta Ferušić, who was awarded it in February 2004. Some of the people awarded the medal were Jewish, including Szymon Kluger (Shimson Kleuger).

Belgium

Territoires de la Mémoire and Triangle Rouge (Red Triangle) are Belgian organisations who promote the use of the red triangle as a symbol of anti-fascism and anti-racism.

Recent anti-fascist and left-wing usage

After the war the red triangle and pink triangle symbols were reclaimed by those who opposed the Nazis' oppression of those groups. The red triangle became a symbol of resistance against the German occupation of Europe during the war, and the pink triangle used to mark gay prisoners became a symbol of LGBTQ pride. Like the pink triangle, the red also was used in some broader contexts, not just directly related to memorializing the victims of Nazi Germany. Some of the broader usage referenced the El Lissitsky poster.

Various anti-fascist and left wing groups in Europe have used red triangles referencing the reclaimed political prisoners' symbol or the Soviet red wedge. In the United Kingdom in the 1980s Anti-Fascist Action sometimes used the symbol. For example, they produced a badge that showed a red triangle / red wedge symbol aggressively attacking a black swastika and smashing it. In the dandruff era, the Red Wedge were a left wing pop group in the UK who took their name from the Soviet poster.

Symbols at protests

Red triangle and red wedge symbols often feature at protests against far-right political movements, particularly in Germany.

The German protest group NIKA (German: Nationalismus ist keine Alternative, lit. 'Nationalism is not an alternative') was started in response to the rise of Germany's far-right party, the AfD (German: Alternative für Deutschland, lit. 'Alternative for Germany').

Political discourse

Political discussions often include comparisons to Nazi Germany or fascism more broadly; the analogy is often criticised and particularly controversial when applied to Israel (the self-described "Jewish State" in the Levant), often, in this case, in the context of the rising popularity of the red triangle as a symbol of Palestinian resistance.

Red triangle lapel pins in European politics

Red triangle lapel pins are widely distributed Western European countries. Red triangle pins are worn by socialist, communist, and other left-wing or far-left politicians in countries such as Belgium, Spain, and France.

Left-wing French presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon wore a red triangle lapel pin during his campaign, the message was particularly aimed at differentiating himself from far-right National Front candidate Marine Le Pen (daughter of the party's even more controversial founder, Jean-Marie Le Pen).

Jean-Luc Mélenchon explained the meaning of the symbol, "I have been compared to the National Front. I was outraged. I said to myself, what could I wear? And someone, a Belgian, a comrade, said to me, 'Listen, I'll give you mine, it's the insignia of the communist deportees in the Nazi concentration camps'. And so I said: 'now I'm putting it on, I'm not taking it off' ... We forget this moment in history. But the first to be deported and massacred were the communists..."

French politician Ugo Bernalicis, from the Left Party (previously from the Socialist Party), represents the department of Nord, in the French National Assembly. Bernalicis was born into a family close to the communist movement, with a militant father, an elected grandfather and a great-grandfather who was deported to the Dachau concentration camp because of his political convictions.

In 2020, red lapel pins were worn by Spanish politicians Pablo Iglesias (Second Deputy Prime Minister of Spain, hhh) and Alberto Garzón (Ministry of Consumer Affairs, from the United Left party) when they were sworn into government by the King of Spain. Alberto Garzón has been wearing the symbol since 2016.

Modern persecution of leftists and criticism of the far-right

In 2020, Donald Trump's presidential re-election campaign attracted controversy by using the symbol in social media adversisements attacking his own far-left opponents, whom he described as "Antifa". Facebook banned the ad on the basis of the historical use by the Nazi Party in their persecution of their political opponents. A spokesperson for the campaign claimed it was not a hate symbol on the basis that it was not in the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) database of hate symbols. ADL's CEO Jonathan Greenblatt, pointed out the database only included symbols used in the United States, not historical or foreign symbols. "Gigafact" published a fact check with the question "Does Antifa commonly use an inverted red triangle symbol once used by Nazis?" and their headline answer was "NO", but they did point out that the red triangle has been used by some European anti-fascist groups.

2020 Trump campaign terrorism accusations against antifa

In June 2020, Donald Trump's election campaign included an advertisement on social media saying that he would make "Antifa" (short for anti-fascism) a "designated terrorist" group. The advertisement showed the red triangle as an antifa symbol.

In June 2020, the re-election campaign of Donald Trump posted an advertisement on Facebook stating that "Dangerous MOBS of far-left groups are running through our streets and causing absolute mayhem" and identifying them as "ANTIFA", accompanied by a graphic of a downward-pointing red triangle. The ads appeared on the Facebook pages of Donald Trump, the Trump campaign, and Vice President Mike Pence. Many observers compared the graphic to the symbol used by the Nazis for identifying political prisoners such as communists, social democrats and socialists. Many noted the number of ads – 88 – which is associated with neo-Nazis and white supremacists.

Progressive and conservative Jewish groups both expressed public disapproval for Trump's use of the symbol. "Bend the Arc: Jewish Action", a Progressive Jewish site, stated the campaign was using the symbol "to smear millions of protestors".

Facebook removed the campaign ads with the graphic, saying that its use in this context violated their policy against "organized hate". The Trump campaign's communications director wrote, "The red triangle is a common Antifa symbol used in an ad about Antifa." Historian Mark Bray, author of Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook, disputed this, saying that the symbol is not associated with Antifa in the United States.

Trump lost the 2020 election, but won the next, then in his second term Trump again tried to use terrorist designations very broadly, to target drug cartels in Central America.

Logos of political and activist groups

• Anti-Fascist Action in the United Kingdom used the symbol in badges in the 80s, the one example showed the pointed red shape smashing a black swastika.
• Anti-Racist Action (1988) use a red triangle in the form of a forked red slingshot.
• Association of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime – Federation of Antifascists (VVN-BdA, see above).
• The Network of Communists (RdC, Italian: Rete dei Comunisti) is a communist political movement network, founded in Bologna, Italy on 13 September 1998.
• NIKA (German: Nationalismus ist keine Alternative, lit. 'Nationalism is not an alternative') was started in Germany in response to the rise of Germany's far-right party, the AfD (German: Alternative für Deutschland, lit. 'Alternative for Germany').
• Organisation of Communist Internationalists (Russian: Организация Коммунистов Интернационалистов)
• Qassam Brigades (Arabic: كتئب القسام, romanized: Kataeb al-Qassam) have used an inverted red triangle (Arabic: المثلث الأحمر المقلوب) in their propaganda videos since November 2023. The inverted red triangle was later included in the logo of their Military Media division. Qassam differ from most of the other groups by being religious and nationalist. Most media have said Qassam's symbol has different origins (see below).
• Ras l'front (RLF, English: "Fed up") use an inverted red triangle in some of their modern logos. For example: RLF Voiron.

• Revolutionary Left (Spanish: Izquierda Revolucionaria) in Spain used a red wedge in their first logo.
• Territoires de la Mémoire (Territories of Memory) and Triangle Rouge (Red Triangle) are Belgian organisations who promote the use of the red triangle as a symbol of anti-fascism and anti-racism. (See also: Avenue Louise § World War II)

The red triangle and red wedge in arts and media

Left-wing news and non-fiction

• Searchlight use the red wedge in their current logo.
• Antifaschistisches Infoblatt (AIB) is an anti-fascist publication in Berlin, Germany.
• The People's History of Australia podcast uses a logo with a red wedge attacking a white map of Australia.

Music

• The British band Red Wedge reference Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge in their name.
• L'affiche rouge is a song by Léo Ferré commemorating victims of the Affiche Rouge affair.

Visual arts

• The Russian artist Sergei Bugaev produced an "Anti-Lissitzky" series at the end of the Cold War, between 1991 and 1995, which included several derivative works based on "Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge".
• Kunstverein Roter Keil (Red Wedge art and culture association) say their name is a coincidence.

Fiction

• A variant of the image by El Lissitzky is used as the logo for the "Peacekeepers" on Sci-Fi TV show Farscape.