Poland: Have things improved for the LGBTQ+ community under Tusk?
Poland still has the worst record on LGBTQ+ rights in the EU. Its new center-left government promised change for the better. But has life actually improved for the LGBTQ+ community under Donald Tusk's government?
Transcript
00:00Poland has the worst record in the EU on LGBTQ plus rights.
00:13In the run-up to last October's parliamentary election, the centre-left alliance, led by
00:17Donald Tusk, was seen as a beacon of hope for the rainbow community.
00:21It is very often a rainbow, but unfortunately, politics does not keep up with the usual trends.
00:31The illiberal policies of the previous National Conservative government foster the hostile
00:37attitude towards the rainbow community.
00:40Anti-LGBTQ plus measures were put in place, including the creation of so-called LGBT-free
00:46zones in certain municipalities led by the ruling party.
00:51We are gradually noticing that the climate has improved and the situation has improved.
00:59These are not any diametrical changes, but we see, above all, that the approach of the
01:06police in the context of equality marches and parades has changed a bit this year.
01:11In previous years, a large part of the cities marching had huge problems with the police.
01:17The police did not want to cooperate, so this is a positive change that makes life better.
01:26A noticeable difference between the previous government and the current government is the
01:32readiness to meet us and to talk to us.
01:37The LGBT-free zones are now slowly being dissolved, following interventions by various activists
01:44and the European Union.
02:06Paweł Zaszim, the owner of the queer restaurant Butero in downtown Warsaw, has also noticed
02:12a change in the media's approach.
02:42But this change is not just driven by politics.
03:00Despite these changes, queer people are still not granted equal rights in Poland.
03:05Same-sex marriage is not recognised, for example, and same-sex couples cannot adopt children.
03:12It is very depressing that we do not have any rights here, not only of partner relationships,
03:18but also rights that would protect us from hate speech or discrimination.
03:23It remains to be seen what will happen under the Tusk government and if Poland makes its
03:29way up the rankings on the legal and social acceptance of LGBTQ people in Europe.