Since the Far Right came to power in Poland in 2015 many of the local councils in the South-East of the country decided to pass motions which declared them ‘LGBT Free Zones’. Politicians who support them claim that they are not meant to discriminate against people but protect families and children from the ‘evil’ LGBT ‘ideology’.
Last year during the Presidential campaign the incumbent which is known for his harsh rhetoric towards LGBT people claimed that they are not people but an ideology, an ideology which is worse than communism.
During the campaign, the anti-LGBT sentiments grew stronger each day, an MP and a member of Duda’s HQ during a debate which was live on TVP (public broadcaster) made a controversial statement in which he said:
‘Let’s stop talking about idiocies like human rights. These people are not the equal of normal people’.
From that point onwards the LGBT issue became a huge part of the campaign as Duda’s opponents went after him for having people in his staff which are homophobic. On top of that a former Minister of Interior now an MEP tweeted that:
‘Poland is the most beautiful without LGBT’
For which he later apologised. Many of the politicians belonging to the government party at times don’t even hide their homophobia and openly make derogatory comments about LGBT people while a section of polish society applauds them for doing so. One might actually wonder what’s worse, such politicians or the people who vote for them?
In terms of conversion therapy: a topic which made headlines in Ireland few weeks ago; the issue gets even more complicated as some Ministers in Poland are running competitions to organizations which are responsible for carrying these pseudo-scientific practices.
A number of the regions which declared themselves ‘LGBT Free’ began losing EU grants. Some towns such as Krasnik, for example, are repealing such motions, which passed not so long ago.
Interestingly Krasnik also made itself a ‘5G Free Zone’, among some other Polish towns which have also passed similar motions.
The 2020 Presidential campaign also saw for the first time in Polish history an openly gay man running for President; Robert Biedron. Bierdon is a very well-known Polish politician and LGBT activist, whilst the major opposition parties on the other hand have promised that if they come to power they will ensure that same-sex civil parentships are passed.
As a country Poland has a long and complicated history but Poles must remember that throughout their history, they were a country which was tolerant and opened to new ideas and beliefs especially during the Jagellonian period, furthermore Poland was the only country in Europe where being Jewish was legal during the medieval era, Poland was a country to which people of other faiths fled from other European states as they were prosecuted in their home countries for their belief.
For now, the country remains under the governance of far right politicians however the EU was recently declared itself a 'LGBTQ+ Freedom Zone' protecting the rights of those in the LGBTQ+ community. It is likely Poland and their Anti LGBTQ+ policies will be sanctioned further until their policies no longer breach EU standards.
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