But last week when Katarzyna Sztop-Rutkowska saw the angry mob of thousands that awaited the marchers, who numbered only a few hundred, she was shocked. They blocked her way, first hurling invective, then bricks and stones and fireworks, she said. From the balconies, people threw eggs and rotten vegetables. Even before the march started, there were violent confrontations, and by the time the tear gas cleared and the crowd dispersed, dozens were injured and Poland was left reeling.
Much as the racist violence in Charlottesville, Va. In a show of solidarity with the L. They carried rainbow flags and vowed to combat intolerance. Solidarity will conquer the time of contempt. Since this spring, when the governing Law and Justice Party stepped up its anti-L. Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of the governing party, told supporters at a July campaign event staged to look like a family picnic in Kuczki-Kolonia, a village in central Poland, that it was their duty to defend the nation from what he called Western decadence.
For weeks, the group set up a tent in the center of the old town square of Bialystok to spread its message. Sztop-Rutkowska said. The anti-gay language has also been pushed by many figures in the Roman Catholic Church. Dozens were injured in Bialystok. The police have identified over people and accused them of attacking the marchers. At least 77 have been fined or charged. One man was accused of beating a year-old boy.
In the week that followed, the violence was condemned by officials from both the governing party and the church β though both also denied responsibility for fomenting fear and hatred. Jakub Przybysz is well acquainted with the hatred directed at gay people in many parts of the country. It is why he hid his sexuality for years.
Even before the recent anti-L. There are no gay-friendly clubs or coffeehouses. It would be crazy, he said, to walk hand-in-hand with a same-sex partner. Przybysz said that the anger he witnessed at the march has been fueled by language from political and religious figures.
