Since 2019, around 100 Polish municipalities that make up almost one third of the country declared themselves to be free of “LGBT-ideology”. More municipalities could follow soon, as lobbying for the implementation of such resolutions is relatively strong in some areas of Poland. The resolutions in themselves are unenforceable and pose no direct legal consequences for members of the LGBTQI+ community. However, declarations like these not only lead to separation and exclusion of LGBTIQ+ citizens but also to discrimination and hate towards them.
With this online panel discussion, the Queeropeans of the College of Europe student team wants to hold a debate on what the European Union can do in order to help safeguard human rights of LGBTQI+ people in the European Union. We therefore want to analyze the current situation of LGBTQI+ rights in Poland and talk about possible ways of acting towards a more tolerant society.
The panelists are:
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Terry REINTKE (German MEP, G/EFA, Co-President of LGBTI Intergroup, https://twitter.com/TerryReintke);
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Kamil MACZUGA (Polish Activist, Co-founder Atlas of Hate, https://twitter.com/maczugakamil);
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Bartosz STASZEWSKI (Polish Activist and filmmaker, co-organiser of the Equality March in Lublin, organiser of LGBT-free zones project, https://twitter.com/BartStaszewski);
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Dr Piotr GODZISZ (Lecturer in Criminology at Birmingham City University, https://twitter.com/PGodzisz).
The panel discussion will be moderated by German journalist Bastian BRAUNS (Economics editor for the political magazine "Cicero", https://twitter.com/BastianBrauns).
The panel discussion will be held and broadcasted on WebEx, open for general attendance. The event will last 1.5 hours.
The link for the WebEx panel is:
Meeting link: https://coleurope.webex.com/coleurope/j.php?MTID=m0f0be78533c73490a1544e67262e820a
Meeting Number: 163 515 6569
Password: QUEEROPEANS2020
Contact persons: students Tim STEHLE and Lucía MELLADO CALDERON