Congratulations, Anna Grodzka!

BY NOREEN FAGAN – I
never thought that Poland would lead the way in progressive politics, but
apparently I was wrong.

Anna Grodzka is a trans woman who ran as a candidate for the Palikot Movement in Poland’s national election on Oct 9.

The party won 10 percent of all votes. Since
Poland works under a proportional representation system — where parties are
allocated seats in parliament based on the proportion of votes the party
receives — it seemed likely that she would win a a seat in the lower house of
parliament, the Sejm.

A day before
her win, an article in the Telegraph quoted Grodzka as saying, “If I’ll be elected in

Krakow, I’ll be Poland’s first transgender woman and the only transgender MP
not only in Poland, but the entire world.”

Well, now it is official: she is the first trans woman in Poland’s parliament.

Congratulations!

Keep Reading

Job discrimination against trans and non-binary people is alive and well

OPINION: A study reveals that we have a long way to go to reach workplace equality for trans and non-binary people

The new generation of gay Conservative sellouts

OPINION: Melissa Lantsman’s and Eric Duncan’s refusals to call out their party’s transphobia is a betrayal of the LGBTQ2S+ community

Over 300 anti-LGBTQ2S+ bills have been introduced this year. This doesn’t mean we should panic

OPINION: While it’s important to watch out for threats, not all threats are created equally. Some of these bills will die a natural death

Xtra’s top LGBTQ2S+ stories of the year

The best and brightest—even most bewildering—stories from a back catalogue brimming with insight