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Kampania
Przeciw Homofobi
Mirka
Makuchowska, a gay-rights activist
in Poland, discusses the struggle for LGBT
equality in her country and the
civil-partnership awareness project being
organised by Kampania Przeciw Homofobii.
Kampania Przeciw Homofobii – Campaign
Against Homophobia – (KPH) was established
in 2001 as a national public-benefit
non-governmental organisation with
non-profit status. Its purpose is to work
for the equal rights of lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender people in Poland.
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Kampania Przeciw Homofobi board
members |
In order to
help to increase tolerance and acceptance
among the wider population, and to tackle
stereotypes and prejudices, we conduct a
wide range of activities, including:
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empowering members of the LGBT community
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education
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research
and report writing
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social
awareness campaigns
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combating sexism and working towards
gender equality
KPH offers
psychological and legal help to victims of
homophobia, and is very active in lobbying
for equal rights on the national and
international levels.
Queer May
KPH
specialises in organising large
social-awareness and educational campaigns,
aimed at integrating LGBT people into
society. These include our poster campaign
and photo exhibit, “Let Them See Us”, and
Krakow’s annual “Queer May” festival. We,
also, train and educate students, teachers,
social workers, lawyers, police, parents and
others.
KPH has
taken been part in many international LGBT
initiatives and networks working on LGBT
issues, participating in many youth
exchanges, NGO platforms and social
campaigns across Europe and beyond. We
continue to look for further opportunities
to cooperate and learn from other
organisations, as well as pass on our
knowledge to them. KPH is particularly
interested in working with countries east of
Poland.
One of our
current campaigns is for a Polish
civil-partnership bill. As part of our
promotion of this, we are searching for
same-sex couples from the European Union who
have legalised their partnerships in their
own countries.
In due
course, we will be hosting a photo
exhibition, which will include:
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Polish
same-sex couples who would like to
legalize their partnership in Poland,
but due to lack of a proper law they
can’t – these pictures will be
symbolically black and white.
-
pictures
of same-sex couples from those EU
countries that allow homosexual couples
to get married or legalize their
partnership – these pictures will
contrast with the Polish ones by being
in colour
PTT trustees in Polish gay photo exhibition
I’m pleased
to acknowledge the support from George
Broadhead and Roy Saich of the Pink Triangle
Trust (PTT), who have supplied us with
photographs and a brief account of their
civil partnership registration in 2006. For
our project to be successful, we need other
couples to do likewise, and we would be
grateful to hear from other couple from EU
countries who would be willing to send their
pictures and any accompanying notes from
their own civil-partnership/marriage
celebrations.
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Roy and I celebrated the 45th
year of our relationship in
February this year. He is 70 and
I am 76. I am a retired teacher
and Roy is a retired insurance
worker.
.jpg) |
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George Broadhead (right) and Roy
Saich
at their civil
partnership, 2006
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We are both veteran gay
activists having been involved
in gay rights campaigning
for many years.
We are supporters of the
worldwide Humanist movement,
which staunchly defends LGBT
rights. |
The
exhibition, starting in June, will be held
in two Polish cities, Wroclaw and Warsaw, in
galleries or other places frequently
attended by the public. Following on from
this, our hope is to then show it in the
next 16 biggest Polish cities, during the
autumn. At the opening of the exhibition,
there will be a debate about the lack of
rights for Polish gay couples. Polish LGBT
activists will take part in the discussion.
If you are
interested in contributing, please contact
me
by email.
Mirka Makuchowska has been a member
of KPH since 2006. She was the coordinator
of the Wroclaw branch and is currently the
organisation’s secretary. She’s also in
charge of the development of regional
branches and anti-discrimination workshops
for Wroclaw NGOs.
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