Gert Hekma

Career Hekma finished Gymnasium-β, and in 1978 obtained his master's degree in Cultural anthropology at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. From 1979 to 1981, he worked at Utrecht University. In 1987, Hekma received his PhD in Historical anthropology from Utrecht University.

From 1984 (succeeding Mattias Duyves ) until 2017, Hekma was an assistant professor and teacher at the University of Amsterdam, specializing in the sociology and history of (homo)sexuality. and some of his statements, in particular about pedophilia and about sadomasochism, have been controversial and caused conflicts between him and some of his colleagues and the university board, He has also co-organized several conferences, and has studied the life and works of Jacob Israël de Haan, The latter was organized by the George Mosse Fund, that he co-founded in 2001. and grew up in Bedum, the Netherlands. and was a member of the radical "Red Faggots" (Dutch: "Rooie Flikkers"). and had a fetish for satin. He was a fan of Marquis de Sade: Hekma was also fascinated by De Sade's position on violence, and has used De Sade to provide his students with another perspective on sexuality and violence.

In 2007, he received death threats after supporting the idea of including a boat for children at the Amsterdam Gay Pride. In 2014, Hekma co-created a petition addressed to the Supreme Court of the Netherlands, pleading with the Dutch Supreme Court to not ban pro-pedophilia association Vereniging MARTIJN. His support of MARTIJN resulted in death threats and an attempted burglary.

He and his significant other, sociologist Mattias Duyves (1953), were together for more than forty years. They met in 1977 and married in 2007. Both champion sexual and relational freedom.

Selected publications Hekma published widely on the LGBT history in the Netherlands and Europe, both as a sole author and as a contributing editor. His publications include scientific works and popular documents. Homoseksualiteit in Nederland van 1730 tot de moderne tijd [Homosexuality in The Netherlands from 1730 to Modern Times] (2004) ABC van perversies [The ABCs of Perversions] (2009) A Cultural History of Sexuality in the Modern Age (2011) Sexual Revolutions (2014)