Rainbow flag next to the country's emblem in the parliament sparks outrage
A rainbow flag flew at a parliamentary meeting between politicians of the LGBT+ Community Equality Team and representatives of the Bundestag. The responses to the politician's post are mostly embarrassing.
The tweet was posted on 1 June by Lewicaâs (The Left, political alliance in Polish parliment) MP Krzysztof Ćmiszek. That day the Parliamentary Group for Equality of the LGBT+ Community was meeting with representatives of the German parliament. Despite the fact that the rainbow flag was the theme of the meeting and was most appropriate since it's the beginning of LGBTQ+ pride month, the post provoked mostly negative comments.
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The comments are not surprising. We have the classic range: from excellent advice on what else politicians should be doing these days, to vulgar insults. We will not quote them, especially today. We will only remind you that, in any situation, it is worth remembering that emotionally charged comments give more information about the commentator than about the subject of the comment itself.
Twitter is, of course, a special place. It is the portal where it is easiest to meet crowds of people who need to make their frustrations and negative emotions public. Anonymity, lack of verification and moderation attract people who need to feel better by insulting others.
One can speculate whether this is also, for example, a generational issue. TikTok, whose users are much younger and aware of mental health issues, seems to be a less problematic platform. That is to say, in terms of the emotional balance of users, the app also has its drawbacks and risks, of course.
Why do we need rainbow flags?
One might also wonder why we get so intensely emotional about LGBTQ+ rights in Poland. Paradoxically, the addressee of this question shouldnât be the minority, but the ruling majority in Polish parliament. It is Zjednoczona Prawica (United Right, a conservative political alliance in Poland) that has been instrumental in using LGBTQ+ people, unleashing a campaign against them ahead of the 2019 parliamentary elections.
Among other things, this is why we need Pride. To counterbalance the propaganda cynically spewed by the public media. To show and feel that there are more people supporting the LGBTQ+ community and that this minority will also soon feel peaceful and safe in Poland. As it should be in any normal European country in the 21st century.
According to a 2022 Ipsos poll 82 per cent of Polish men and women aged 18-29 support the right of same-sex couples to formal unions. Of which 46 per cent are in favour of marriage equality. Even on Twitter MP Ćmiszek's post has more likes than negative comments.
