For LGBT Poles, Plane Crash Left Legacies Good and Bad

It’s said that one shouldn’t speak ill of the dead. But in the wake of the tragic April 10 plane crash that killed many of Poland’s political and military leaders, I feel it’s best not to whitewash the truth: for the LGBT citizens of his county, Polish President Lech Kaczynski’s legacy is unquestionably an ugly thing.

Whatever his accomplishments on other fronts, Kaczynski was a steadfast supporter of denying Polish citizens equal rights on the basis of their sexuality. Here are just a few low points in Kaczynski’s history of homophobia:

• Prior to assuming the presidency, Kaczynski proved his anti-gay bona fides as mayor of Warsaw. In 2004, then-Mayor Kaczynski banned gay pride parades in Warsaw, in order to “to protect the morality and religious feelings of the inhabitants of the Polish capital.” In 2005, he did the same, on the grounds that such an event would promote the “homosexual lifestyle.” That year, he also reportedly declared that “I am for tolerance, but against propagating the gay orientation,” and suggested that the parade would be a “joke” that conflicted with the unveiling of a statue of a Polish resistance leader. Nonetheless, the 2005 event drew thousands of gay rights supporters in defiance of the ban.
• As if banning the pride parades wasn’t enough, the then-Mayor authorized a “normality parade,” which was held the week after the impromptu gay pride event. According to Amnesty International, the event reportedly involved members of the right-wing All Polish Youth “shout[ing] slogans inciting intolerance and homophobia.”
• In a 2007 speech, President Kaczynski “attacked what he called ‘the homosexual culture’ and suggested that widespread homosexuality would lead to the disappearance of the human race.”
• During a March 2008 speech, Kaczynski showed images of an American gay couple’s wedding to stoke fears that the European Union’s proposed charter of rights would force Poland to legalize same-sex marriage, and referred to such marriages as “institutions contrary to the moral convictions of Poles.” The couple, Brendan Fay and Thomas Moulton, “We are frustrated to hear that images from such a joyous day are used to spread intolerance ... We would never have agreed to permit our photographs as part of a homophobic campaign.” Despite Kaczynski’s homophobic fearmongering, a subsequent poll showed that a large majority of Poles supported the treaty.

Despite this appalling history, it would be unfair to tar the entire Polish government with an anti-gay brush. A heroic counterpart to Kaczynski’s legacy can be found in the career of Izabela Jaruga-Nowacka, who was killed in the same plane crash that killed Kaczynski. Jaruga-Nowacka, who served as deputy prime minister from 2004 to 2005, was an outspoken proponent of gay rights, and a critic of Kaczynski’s bigoted actions.

In response to Mayor Kaczynski’s decision to ban the parade, she issued this stirring defense of equality: “All citizens have the right to choose their own way of life … I am here to express my protest against the Mayor’s decision which is a violation of the Polish constitution and of civic rights. I am here to show my respect for the Polish tradition of tolerance.”

Poland remains a very conservative, Catholic country, and it has a ways to go before it can truly live up to that tradition. The country still has no legal recognition of same-sex unions, and a July 2009 poll found that 75 percent of Poles oppose same-sex marriage, and that 89 percent oppose adoptions by gay couples. Moreover, it took a decision by the European Court of Human Rights just to force the government to treat gay couples equally with respect to housing rights.

There’s no doubt that this tragedy will occupy a unique place in the consciousness of the Polish people for decades to come. But years from now, when April 10 comes around, it will hopefully be Jaruga-Nowacka’s legacy that they’ll look to as a guide for their future – not the bigotry perpetuated by the late president.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons (Mourners leave candles and flowers outside Poland's Presidential Palace)