A Liverpool-based activist helped organise one of the first-ever Pride protests in Poland.
Olivia Masoja, who lives in Fazakerley, played an integral role in not only demonstrations for the LGBTQ+ community but also for women in the “generally conservative” country she grew up in. The 21-year-old assisted in bringing together the first-ever Pride in Kielce, Poland, by managing a team of volunteers and ensuring the parade ran smoothly. Consisting of a handful of drag queens and 1,000 attendees the city celebrated what makes everyone different but not all the locals were approving of the event.
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Olivia claims the LGBTQ+ group, responsible for delivering the celebrations, had to go through a court case as a result of the conservatives attempting to ban the event and this coupled with the fact that “no companies wanted to be associated with pride because of fear of losing customers” meant there were more setbacks than initially expected. The reason why the receptionist worker was so determined to make the world a better and fairer place for minorities is because of the lack of visible LGBTQ+ people in Poland as well as the bullying she faced growing up.
She told the ECHO : “Growing up where I did and being one of the very few brown kids, everyone always starred at me and gave me unwanted comments and because it was a small town, I already had a lot of anger. One of the reasons which played a big part in me going to protest for others was because I knew what it felt like to be discriminated against.”
Olivia’s first protest was the All-Poland Women’s Strike, Marsz Kobiet, in 2016 - which saw thousands of women, girls and men “dressed in a sea of black” come together to challenge a new law that would effectively ban abortion. At the time, were the proposed ban was to be enacted, all terminations would be criminalised, with women punishable with up to five years in prison. Doctors who were found to have assisted with a termination would also be liable for prosecution and a prison term. And while Olivia loved the “energy” of her first protest and it ignited her spark to attend more, not all have been as peaceful as her first.
She claims during the Women’s Strike in Warsaw last year - which were against the reform of abortion law - the protestors had an altercation with the police and “things got violent and ugly”. She explained “at first the protest went smoothly” but the day took a turn for the worst when the “people began arresting people and wouldn’t tell anyone where they were taking them.”
Olivia added: “The police gave us an ultimatum: we either leave now, not knowing what happened to our fellow protestants, or the police will form a formation not enabling us from leaving the area until they get our ID information. We chose to stay and refused to give them any information. It was cold and everyone was growing weary. The police started trying to catch as many people as they could. We were outnumbered but tried to help each other as we could. It became hard to breathe and I don’t know if it was the nerves or the lack of oxygen but I started passing out. I remember a man I’d never met in my life tried to get me out of there. He held me from behind and started pulling me towards safety.”
Now, having moved to the UK, Olivia’s fight continues as she is the Liverpool coordinator of Polish Migrants Organise for Change, a group which is led by migrants, women and gender nonconforming people, who are getting Polish people in the UK organised. To date, they have supported and mobilised thousands of Polish people across the UK. The group have organised vigils and donations in solidarity with Ukraine, campaigned to expand the voting rights for migrants, and supported EU migrants to apply for new immigration status in the UK. Through their work, they aim to “build a world where anyone can thrive – regardless of where they are from.”
She added: “Pride is incredibly important. It raises awareness, helps with visibility and I dare say it saves the lives of thousands of LGBT+ youth who feel they are all alone. It shows that we are united and transphobia and homophobia have no place in Liverpool or anywhere else as a matter of fact. It shows that we have to keep fighting for basic human rights. What we have to remember though is that Pride is a protest.”
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