We use cookies to improve our service for you. You can find more information in our data protection declaration. New legislation tabled by the right-wing Polish government would ban sex education and criminalize "the promotion of underage sexual activity. Protesters have gathered in Warsaw to oppose new legislation proposed by the Polish government which would ban sex education in schools and treat it as "pedophilia. The new law has the backing of the ruling conservative Law and Justice party PiS , who on Sunday won an increased, but narrow, majority in the parliamentary election.
PiS have condemned previous attempts to broaden sex education in Poland, claiming such efforts would "sexualize" children. PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski has previously described gay pride parades as "traveling theater. Protesters have argued that appropriate sex education is a necessary part of the school curriculum, and would meet the World Health Organization standards for Europe.
The campaign "Stop Sexualization of Youth" has previously claimed that sex education "promotes sexual activity among the youth," according to the Wprost report. The bill will see its second reading in the Polish lower house on Wednesday evening and is expected to be discussed by the senate on Friday, when bigger protests are planned. Given the PiS majority in parliament, the bill is expected to be passed into law.
Most sex education classes in Polish schools teach students how to "prepare for family life," though schools in cities run by more liberal parties have allowed sex education programs. Every evening, DW's editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here.
As Poland shifts sharply to the right on sex education and women's reproductive rights, a feminist organization is fighting back with a campaign to get women talking. The results of parliamentary polls in Poland come as no surprise. PiS party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski's policies aimed at "ordinary folks" have made the party a force for years to come, says DW's Bartosz Dudek.
