The recent changes at Warsaw City Hall include a new ordinance signed by Rafał Trzaskowski, which bans the display of religious symbols on walls and on employees' desks. However, personal religious symbols such as medals or armbands are allowed. Additionally, all office-organized events are required to be secular in nature.

Agata Diduszko-Zyglewska, chairwoman of the New Left-MJN-Razem club, explained to Gazeta Wyborcza that displaying religious symbols could imply that officials are guided by personal religious beliefs at work. She also stated that these new standards align with the constitutional provision on the state's neutrality, which is essential for the religious freedom of all citizens.

Furthermore, the document aims to eliminate discrimination between city officials and residents. City hall employees are required to respect the rights of same-sex couples. They must allow documents to be collected on behalf of a partner or to contact a school about the child of one of them.

The language used in Warsaw offices was also taken into consideration. "In the case of a transgender person whose physical appearance may differ from the stereotypical gender perceptions found in official documents, address them with the name or gender pronouns they themselves indicate," reads the document obtained by Gazeta Wyborcza.

The guidelines recommend that officials use feminine and gender-neutral forms, such as "people living in Warsaw" instead of "male and female residents." Instead of "victim of violence," it should say "person experiencing violence" or "person in a mental health crisis" instead of "mentally ill." If a non-binary person comes to the City Hall, the worker must ask about their pronouns before talking.

"This is another step in building a city that cares about all its residents. Warsaw is the first city in Poland to adopt such a document," Monika Beuth, a spokeswoman for the city hall, tells Gazeta Wyborcza.

The changes adopted at the City Hall in the capital have caused anger among right-wing politicians. Sovereign Poland MP Dariusz Matecki commented, "An action to de-Christianize Poland. The Bolsheviks failed. The neo-Bolsheviks will not succeed."

Father Janusz Chyla quoted a patriotic-religious poem by Karol Balinski, saying, "Only under the cross, only under this sign, Poland is Poland and Pole is Pole."

City councillor Filip Frąckowiak of the Law and Justice party stated, "If the Law and Justice ruled in Warsaw, we would not forbid an official to put a cross on his desk. However, it is known what the agenda is today in the City Hall; I am not surprised by these changes."

Source: Gazeta Wyborcza