Robert Biedroń
Robert Biedroń | |
---|---|
Mayor of Słupsk | |
Assumed office December 6, 2014 | |
Preceded by | Maciej Kobyliński |
Member of the Sejm | |
In office November 2011 – December 2014 | |
Constituency | 26 – Gdynia |
Personal details | |
Born | Rymanów, Poland | April 13, 1976
Political party | Your Movement SLD (previously) |
Domestic partner | Krzysztof Śmiszek |
Alma mater | Kazimierz Pułaski University University of Warmia |
Website | www |
Robert Biedroń (Polish pronunciation: [ˈrɔbɛrt ˈbjedrɔɲ]; born 13 April 1976 in Rymanów beside Krosno, Poland) is a Polish LGBT activist and politician. He was previously a member of Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland party and the Democratic Left Alliance. Member of Your Movement. He also serves on the board of the Polish Campaign Against Homophobia. Formerly a member of the Sejm, he is currently the mayor of Słupsk.
Education
Biedroń has received the following education:
- PhD in political sciences at Pułtusk Academy of Humanities (2011),
- completion diploma of Warsaw School for Political Leaders (2010),
- completion diploma of School of Human Rights at Helsinki Committee for Human Rights (2006),
- absolutory and then bachelor's degree in economy at Kazimierz Pułaski Technical University of Radom (2001 and 2010),
- Master's degree in political science at University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn (2000),
- absolutory (certificate of completion of studies but not licentiate nor master's degree) of civil law at Jagiellonian University (1999).
Political career
In 2005 Biedroń was an unsuccessful Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) candidate for the Sejm, the lower house of the Polish parliament. In 2006 he won election for the Olsztyn Regional Assembly as an SLD candidate. During his term he proposed more than 740 amendments to the regional bylaw, more than 600 of which were accepted.
The following year, in the October 2011 parliamentary elections, Biedroń was elected to the Sejm as a candidate of Palikot Movement receiving 16,919 votes in the Gdynia district.[1] He has been a victim of homophobic aggression, attacked physically several times since his election.[2] He is the first openly gay member of the Sejm.[3] In 2014 Biedroń won the mayoral elections in the city of Słupsk, securing 57% of the vote in the second round. He thus became the first openly gay mayor ever in Poland.[1]
Biedroń was decorated by July 20, 2016 with the French National Order of Merit.
Personal life
His life partner is Krzysztof Śmiszek.
He identifies as an atheist.[4].
Criticism and controversy
Robert Biedroń has been accused of being too slow in responding to accusations that Paweł K., a dance instructor employed in a municipal culture center in Słupsk directly under Biedroń's supervision, accused of pedophilia. In February 2018, Krystyna Danilecka-Wojewódzka, the deputy major of Słupsk and, according to Newsweek Polska, Biedroń's right-hand woman and closest collaborator, received an anonymous letter claiming that Paweł K. had had sex with thirteen and fourteen-year-old girls who were his students. Danilecka-Wojewódzka did not inform the police, and only three months later did Biedroń request a control of the culture center where Paweł K. was employed. In a conversation with Newsweek Polska, Biedroń defended Danilecka Wojewódzka's decision to not inform the police upon receiving the anonymous letter informing of Paweł K.'s crimes. Meanwhile, Biedroń's opponents, including members of the city council from opposition parties, have argued that it was irresponsible for Biedroń to not have responded sooner and find it unlikely that he was not informed of the accusations against Paweł K. for three months.Grochal, Renata (26 August 2018). [<http://www.newsweek.pl/polska/polityka/afera-pedofilska-w-slupsku-uderzy-w-roberta-biedronia-,artykuly,431876,1.html> "Afera pedofilska w Słupsku. Czego nie zrobił Robert Biedroń"]. Newsweek Polska. Retrieved 27 August 2018. {{cite magazine}}
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References
- ^ a b Gay Star News: Poland makes history by electing its first openly gay mayor
- ^ Spiegel.de: Revolution in Polens Provinz: Schwuler erobert Rathaus von Slupsk
- ^ Poland elects first openly gay MP
- ^ "Biedroń: jestem ateistą, ale krzyż jest dla mnie ważny". wprost.pl. Wprost. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
External links
- 1976 births
- Democratic Left Alliance politicians
- Gay politicians
- LGBT mayors
- LGBT politicians from Poland
- LGBT rights activists from Poland
- Living people
- People from Krosno
- Polish atheists
- Members of the Polish Sejm 2011–15
- Mayors of places in Poland
- Palikot's Movement politicians
- People from Rymanów
- Polish politician stubs