Polish people living in Merseyside have revealed they are anxious about returning to their home country.
Maciej, who lives in Southport, and Wiktoria, who lives in Liverpool, are two of countless LGBT+ Polish people who are fearful of the new anti-LGBT ideologies adopted in a number of municipalities in Poland.
A number of 'LGBT-free zones' were established in Poland in 2019 as part of an attempt by local authorities to ban equality marches, inclusive education and other LGBT+ events.
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Support for the resolution came from ultra-conservative religious groups and figureheads such as Archbishop of Krakow Marek Jędraszewsk who described LGBT+ rights movements and inclusive ideology as a 'rainbow plague'.
As of 2021, more than 80 municipalities encompassing approximately one third of Poland have adopted the LGBT-free resolution.
Maciej Tocki-Martinez, 25, who is openly gay, left Poland for the UK in 2015 and now lives in Southport with his husband of one year.
He came out while living in the UK, and found his identity was welcomed and celebrated by the local community.
He explained the LGBT-free towns and municipalities in Poland are not necessarily reflective of the more open attitudes from people in bigger cities.
Maciej told the ECHO : "Warsaw is alright and Gdańsk is alright, but it's the smaller towns and villages where you have the problems."
Maciej's hometown, Lesko, a small town in the South East of Poland close to the Slovakian and Ukrainian borders, is one of the towns that has declared itself a LGBT-free zone.
While Maciej is yet to return to Poland since the introduction of the LGBT-free zones, he plans to visit with his husband once coronavirus travel restrictions subside.
However, he remains somewhat anxious about being able to express himself freely in his birth country.
Maciej continued: "I would not feel confident to go to these places.
"I would not feel happy and able to express myself."
He relayed the story of two of his friends in Poland, a male same-sex couple, who have been subjected to discrimination on the grounds of their sexuality.
He continued: "People swear and them and push them in the street.
"Some people are scared to hold hands because they are afraid people might beat them up."
Maciej's words do not antagonise the people of Poland, but rather hold right wing public figures including the aforementioned Marek Jędraszewsk accountable for the anti-LGBT rhetoric pushed on to the Polish public.
The Sandgrounder has since come out to his family who all accept him for who he is, but fears that if he had never left Poland his coming out journey may have looked very different.
Maciej continued: "I knew I was gay back then, but I was scared."
"In England, people don't care about who you are or where you're from.
"But people in Poland sometimes don't like things they don't understand, even if it's something simple like wearing skinny jeans."
This sentiment is mirrored by Wiktoria, a Polish transgender woman living in Liverpool.
Wiktoria, who chose to use a pseudonym, moved to the UK in 2015 out of the want to provide her family with better access to education and life opportunities.
When she moved to Liverpool, Wiktoria found comfort in her friends who were open and accepting of her wish to explore her identity. She started her transition journey in early 2021, beginning the process of legally changing her name and gender.
But safety and freedom are feelings she experienced very little in her home country.
Wiktoria told the ECHO: "I met people like me in Warsaw, which is a very open city.
"That's the advantage of the capital, but you don't see this everywhere.
"In smaller towns, people will sometimes mock you and laugh at you. If they see something they don't agree with, they can be aggressive."
She too is fearful for the safety and wellbeing of LGBT+ people living under the homophobic, biphobic and transphobic regime.
Wiktoria added: "I cannot fathom how two countries that are not far from each other can be so different.
"If you live in the LGBT-free zones, it's a nightmare. Many of my friends are scared."
"I have no plans to go back to Poland.
"This is our home and this is our future."
Human rights organisations around the world echo Maciej and Wiktoria's concerns.
In December 2019, the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of condemning the zones and released a statement to urge Polish officials to revoke all these resolutions, reiterating European Union funds 'must not be used for discriminatory purpose'.
Many Polish people also oppose the zone implementation, gathering in masses at LGBT+ demonstrations to oppose the resolutions.
Despite this, the LGBT-free zones remain, with Poland now described as the country with the worst track record for LGBT+ rights in the EU.
People like Maciej and Wiktoria are frightened for the future of LGBT+ rights in Poland, but they haven't lost hope for positive social change.
Maciej said: "It's not easy to live in Poland and be LGBT+, but to those who are I would encourage them to be themselves.
"Those who accept you will accept you and those who don't, you can leave behind."
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