Poland's legislative elections on Sunday (October 13th) put an end to an election campaign marked by omnipresent anti-LGBT rhetoric (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender). Insults, verbal attacks, demonstrations ... The homosexual rights activists were the main target of this campaign, including its main headliner, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, leader of the nationalist party and conservative PiS.

The Archbishop of Krakow, Marek Jedraszewski, has not done in the half measure either. In a sermon commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising against the German occupation on 2 August, he went so far as to compare the LGBT movement with the "plague [communist]".

"Our earth is no longer overwhelmed by the red plague, which does not mean that there is not a new one that wants to control our souls, our hearts and minds." It's not a Marxist, Bolshevik plague but it is born of the same spirit - it is not red, but rainbow, "said the archbishop, who is among the most powerful prelates of Poland, in reference to the colorful flag erected in symbol of the LGBT community.

"A rainbow plague"

A few days later, he recidivated in an interview with a pro-government weekly, saying that the authorities should "make it clear that this ideology is a threat to the state." Request heard, and answered. In a speech delivered on August 16, in which he expresses his "deep gratitude" to the Archbishop for his defense of "the normal Polish family" against threats to the "culture and freedom of the country", Jaroslaw Kaczynski has the LGBT issue at the heart of the election campaign, engaging in a parody of the parades of the traditional "Pride March", which he compared to "traveling theaters".

"If the opposition forms a government, then it will be dominated by those who want a radical destruction of the moral and cultural order in our country," he said in early October to a Catholic television channel.

According to Stanley Bill, professor of Polish studies at the University of Cambridge, interviewed by France 24, "the party PiS tried to suggest that good Catholics can not vote for the opposition", in this country is very predominantly Catholic.

At the same time, "it is not true to say that the main body of the episcopate supports most of the PiS," he continued, "but some parts of the Church have certainly given that impression" .

The other "Other"

The type of speech held by both Jaroslaw Kaczynski and Marek Jedraszewski "figures prominently in PiS rhetoric," observes Jan Zielonka, a Polish expert and professor of political science at Oxford University. "Before the last general election in 2015, the focus was on migrants," he told France 24. "Today, LGBT people have replaced them as the other 'Other'."

At the end of September, in the southeastern city of Lublin, riot police arrested about 30 protesters who were trying to block a "Pride March" rally by hitting the participants with eggs. Two troublemakers who brought homemade bombs were also arrested.

The bombs were "a worrying sign," says Stanley Bill, also a co-author of the blog "Notes from Poland". "When such speeches are made about a minority group, it is to be feared that this leads to violence."

Indeed, many LGBT Poles today say they live in fear. "We received death threats, which forced us not to participate in this march," Bartosz Staszewski, one of the organizers of the Lublin parade, told Reuters, while another member of the Local LGBT community says it is "afraid that [its] car will be vandalized, or that we will set fire to [his] apartment".

Religious symbols, national symbols

Despite this violence, whether verbal or physical, Jaroslaw Kacszynski's invective against "LGBT ideology" is far from detrimental to his party's popularity. Favorite of the elections, the PiS should obtain, Sunday, October 13, more than 40% of the votes, according to a set of polls realized by the specialized site Wybory.

According to Stanley Bill, the PiS party - "Law and Justice" - "plays at its core with the LGBT issue, fueling fears to get socially conservative voters to go to the polls, because they need to maximize participation."

For Alex Szczerbiak, professor of political science at the University of Sussex, to keep his electorate base and destabilize the opposition, the PiS puts his social policies at the heart of his project.

"When it comes to 'LGBT Pride March', he continues, many people who are not religious are offended when religious symbols are used in a secular way, as these are often national symbols." he explains.

The "Black Madonna" erected during a "Pride March" is a good example. Catholic symbol among the most important of Poland, the famous icon had seen the golden halo crowning the head of the Virgin Mary transformed into a rainbow.

"Based on examples like this, the PiS can stand as the defender of Polish identity to broaden its electorate," says Alex Szczerbiak.

It seems, however, that Poland is gradually becoming less Catholic. In ten years, the number of people attending the Sunday Mass has decreased by 2.5 million. "There seems to be a connection between the progressive decline of the church and its increasingly anti-LGBT rhetoric," Stanley Bill argues. "A radicalization that develops in response to a feeling of being besieged."

In the latest ranking of European countries in terms of LGBT rights and freedoms, prepared by the International Association of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual and Intersex (ILGA), Poland ranks 39th. Out of 49.

Article adapted from the English by Pauline Rouquette, find the original version here.