Mastodawn

After years of legal discrimination, #Poland's #SameSex couples await civil union law

March 6, 20245:31 AM ET
by Rob Schmitz

WARSAW, Poland — "In an apartment on the outskirts of Warsaw, 5-year-old Olek fills his home with the twangs of a ukulele while his 2-year-old sister, Jagienka, sings along in a strong, off-key yowl.

"Their mothers, Ola and Karolina, smile at the cacophony: the sounds of a happy family. But here in Poland, this family is not protected under law.

"'Starting a family like ours, we knew what kinds of obstacles we'd be facing, and we always had hope,' says Karolina. 'I remember when we voted last October, we told each other, 'We are about to change the world.'

"Karolina and Ola — who withhold their surnames to protect their children — are in a same-sex partnership, and Ola is the biological mother of Olek and Jagienka. The two have been partners for 11 years.

"Now that Poland has a new, liberal government, Karolina and Ola are hoping it paves the way for legal status for civil unions. Prime Minister Donald Tusk promised he'd do so within his government's first 100 days in power, and a bill that would legalize civil unions is expected to be debated in the Polish Parliament sometime in March.

"'We're not hung up on having a pretty wedding and white wedding dresses,' Karolina says. 'We want equal rights — the same rights that married couples have. We want to have a legal family under Polish law. That's our dream.'"

#LGBTQ+ #LoveIsLove #LoveWins #MarriageEquality #LBTQI