After Krakow joined the LGBT+ Free Zones, the Mayor of Edinburgh asked their counterpart in Poland to rethink their position and oppose to homophobia by defending LGBT+ rights.
As reported by the Edinburgh Evening News, the Lord Provost of Edinburgh, Frank Ross, has written to the Mayor of Krakow – Jacek Majchrowski – and has asked him to clarify the Polish city’s opposition to homophobia and LGBT+ oppression.
Since 1994 the two cities are twinned by a civic partnership agreement, and cooperate in many areas including culture, heritage, monument protection and education. This same partnership has been renewed last year, but after Krakow decided to join the “LGBT+ Free Zones”, the Mayor of Edinburgh is urging them to rethink their position.
Twinned towns can obtain EU grants of up to €150,000 through the partnership scheme and many EU cities are withholding their twin-partnerships with some Polish cities given their homophobic and anti-LGBT+ positions.
Mayor Majchrowski is well known for being an LGBT+ Ally, and has publicly denounced homophobia in the past, like in July of this year when he shared an open letter in support of the LGBT+ citizens of Krakow, where he wrote:
“Dear LGBT+ people, you are not alone. We are with you, we support you and we will do everything to make you feel at home in Krakow – because here is your home.”
Edinburgh is ready to “assist and support Krakow” in resisting homophobic policies.
In case Krqkow’s position will stay as it is at the moment, this partnership between the two cities could be soon ended. But this would not be this first case. Saint-Jean-de-Brave, a French city, has already ended their partnership with the Polish city of Tuchów for reasons linked to homophobia. Other cities followed the French one: Fermoy in the Republic of Ireland (twinned with Nowa Dęba) and Nieuwegein (twinned with Puławy) in the Netherlands.
