Polish man convicted of hate speech against LGBT
The van with the anti-woke slogans. Photo Facebook, Fundacja Pro - Prawo do Życia
Central Europe
The foreman of a conservative organisation in Poland has been convicted for “criminally defaming LGBT people.” The reason for the verdict is that the defendant drove around with anti-woke slogans on his vans.
Mariusz Dzierzawski, head of the Fundacja Pro – Prawo Do Zycia organisation (Foundation Pro – Right to Live), has been running a campaign against the LGBT lobby for a long time. That led LGBT rights NGO Tolerado to start a court case against him, Notes from Poland reports.
Judge Malgorzata Uszacka from the district court in Gdansk ruled that he is guilty of “criminally defaming LGBT people” and “hate speech”. She sentenced him to a year of community service and ordered him to donate 15,000 zloty (3200 euros) to a charity organisation. In addition, Dzierzawski has to publish an apology on his website. At the same time, Dzierzawski has the option to appeal the verdict.
Claims
Dzierzawski condemned the ruling. He compares the court to “mechanisms of totalitarian regimes.” According to him, the claims of his organisation are based on “publicly available scientific research and media publications.” He added that the “allegedly defamatory content that our foundation disseminates in Poland is nothing more than the truth about the social and medical consequences of homosexual practices and the plans of the LGBT lobby towards Polish children.”
The Right to Life organisation had been running a campaign called “Stop Paedophilia”. It claimed that the LGBT lobby uses sex ed in schools to sexualise children. The campaign included vans driving around with slogans linking the LGBT community to the sexual abuse of children.
Repressive tool
Deputy justice minister Marcin Romanowski is also very critical of the verdict. He tweeted that “The [judicial] caste treats the courts as a political and repressive tool against opponents of LGBT ideology.” Romanowski belongs to the ruling coalition, which is known for its conservative view on sexuality and gender.
Skandaliczny wyrok z Gdańska: szef fundacji Pro Prawo Do Życia skazany na rok ograniczenia wolności, wpłatę 15 tys. zł na fundację Ochojskiej i przeprosiny za kampanię przeciw lobby LGBT. Kasta traktuje sądy jak narzędzie polityczno-represyjne wobec przeciwników ?️? ideologii.
— Marcin Romanowski (@MarRomanowski) March 22, 2023
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