Krystian Legierski
Encyclopedia
Krystian Legierski is a Polish
LGBT
activist, entrepreneur, member of the Greens 2004. In local elections in 2010
he won a seat in the Warsaw City Council
, thus becoming the first openly gay politician elected to a political office in Poland.
He was born in Poland, to a Polish mother and a Mauritania
n father who was in Poland as an international student
.
Legierski studied Law at the University of Warsaw
. He has been active in LGBT movement. In 2003 he co-authored first draft of a law on civil union
s sponsored in the Polish Senate by Maria Szyszkowska
; the law was passed by the Senate, but was not considered by the Sejm. Since 2009 he has been involved in another effort to introduce civil unions into Polish legal system. Between 2006 and 2010 he co-hosted Lepiej późno niż wcale (Better Late Than Never) - an LGBT radio programme on TOK FM.
In 2003 he founded his first club called Le Madame in the Warsaw Old Town
. Le Madame was a nightclub, but also a cultural center, providing space for alternative theatre, music, drag queen shows, art exhibitions and political debate. It was closed by the acting mayor of Warsaw, Mirosław Kochalski, in March 2006, shortly after Lech Kaczyński
, Kochalski's predecessor who had a history of banning Gay Pride
events in Warsaw, became President of Poland. The closure was met with protests, which came to be labelled as "the Polish Stonewall
". Along with Le Madame Legierski founded a gay club Tomba Tomba (later renamed Usta Mariana) as well as M25 - a nightclub and a theatre scene.
Legierski was among founding members of the Polish Green party Greens 2004. In November 2010 he won a seat in Warsaw City Council. He ran on a Social Democratic ballot, following an official electoral agreement between the Greens and the Democratic Left Alliance
.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
activist, entrepreneur, member of the Greens 2004. In local elections in 2010
Polish local elections, 2010
The 2010 Polish local elections were held in two parts, with its first round on November 21 and second on December 5. The first round included elections of deputies to provincial voivodeship sejmiks, as well for gmina and powiat councilors. The second round of elections were marked for mayors,...
he won a seat in the Warsaw City Council
Warsaw City Council
Warsaw City Council is a unicameral governing body of the city of Warsaw, the capital of Poland.The council was first created following the location of Warsaw under the terms of the Magdeburg Law in the Middle Ages. The modern council is regulated by the Warsaw Act of 2002. It consists of 60...
, thus becoming the first openly gay politician elected to a political office in Poland.
He was born in Poland, to a Polish mother and a Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
n father who was in Poland as an international student
International student
According to Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development , international students are those who travel to a country different from their own for the purpose of tertiary study. Despite that, the definition of international students varies in each country in accordance to their own national...
.
Legierski studied Law at the University of Warsaw
University of Warsaw
The University of Warsaw is the largest university in Poland and one of the most prestigious, ranked as best Polish university in 2010 and 2011...
. He has been active in LGBT movement. In 2003 he co-authored first draft of a law on civil union
Civil union
A civil union, also referred to as a civil partnership, is a legally recognized form of partnership similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples rights,...
s sponsored in the Polish Senate by Maria Szyszkowska
Maria Szyszkowska
Maria Szyszkowska is a Polish academic, writer and former Senator. Szyszkowska was a member of the SLD and chaired that Party's Ethics Committee...
; the law was passed by the Senate, but was not considered by the Sejm. Since 2009 he has been involved in another effort to introduce civil unions into Polish legal system. Between 2006 and 2010 he co-hosted Lepiej późno niż wcale (Better Late Than Never) - an LGBT radio programme on TOK FM.
In 2003 he founded his first club called Le Madame in the Warsaw Old Town
Warsaw Old Town
Warsaw's Old Town is the oldest historic district of the city. It is bounded by Wybrzeże Gdańskie, along the bank of the Vistula, and by Grodzka, Mostowa and Podwale Streets. It is one of Warsaw's most prominent tourist attractions....
. Le Madame was a nightclub, but also a cultural center, providing space for alternative theatre, music, drag queen shows, art exhibitions and political debate. It was closed by the acting mayor of Warsaw, Mirosław Kochalski, in March 2006, shortly after Lech Kaczyński
Lech Kaczynski
Lech Aleksander Kaczyński was Polish lawyer and politician who served as the President of Poland from 2005 until 2010 and as Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 22 December 2005. Before he became a president, he was also a member of the party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość...
, Kochalski's predecessor who had a history of banning Gay Pride
Gay pride
LGBT pride or gay pride is the concept that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people should be proud of their sexual orientation and gender identity...
events in Warsaw, became President of Poland. The closure was met with protests, which came to be labelled as "the Polish Stonewall
Stonewall riots
The Stonewall riots were a series of spontaneous, violent demonstrations against a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn, in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City...
". Along with Le Madame Legierski founded a gay club Tomba Tomba (later renamed Usta Mariana) as well as M25 - a nightclub and a theatre scene.
Legierski was among founding members of the Polish Green party Greens 2004. In November 2010 he won a seat in Warsaw City Council. He ran on a Social Democratic ballot, following an official electoral agreement between the Greens and the Democratic Left Alliance
Democratic Left Alliance
Democratic Left Alliance is a social-democratic political party in Poland. Formed in 1991 as a coalition of centre-left parties, it was formally established as a single party on 15 April 1999. It is currently the third largest opposition party in Poland....
.
External links
- Krystian Legierski at the website of Greens 2004 (in Polish)