Mediating shame and pride: countermedia coverage of Independence Day in Poland and the US

This article adopts a comparative qualitative approach to studying the rhetoric of injured pride in the coverage of Independence Day celebrations by the right-wing countermedia in Poland (wPolityce.pl) and the US (Breitbart News) from 2012 to 2018. In both countries, the number of countermedia articles on Independence Day proliferated in the aftermath of the election of the Law and Justice party (2015) and Donald Trump (2016). Based on the analysis of the narrative strategy for affective polarisation, we argue that the countermedia mobilise support from an electorate of ‘the disenfranchised’ by strategically invoking emotions of shame and pride. By positioning the radical right as a political force that shields ‘patriots’ from the leftist ‘pedagogy of shame’, the outlets instrumentalise the mobilising potential of shame by transforming it into righteous anger and pride. This strategy results in a mediated ‘emotional regime’ that offers guidelines for an acceptable emotional repertoire for the members of the nationally bound in-group.

PiS vs LGBT: The “Othering” of the LGBT Movement as an Element of Populist Radical Right Party Discourse in Poland

PiS vs LGBT: The “Othering” of the LGBT Movement as an Element of Populist Radical Right Party Discourse in PolandThe article explores how the LGBT movement is “othered” to fit into right-wing populist discourse and is thereby utilised as an element of a political strategy by right-wing populist actors. I focus on Law and Justice (Prawo i Sprawiedliwość), a Polish populist radical right party (continuously in power since 2015), whose anti-LGBT rhetoric increased anew ahead of the 2019 European Parliament election. This study presents the results of a critical discourse analysis (conducted using Ruth Wodak and Martin Reisigl’s analytical framework) of selected texts and visuals from the party’s official website and from Twitter accounts of its prominent members. I analysed how the party representatives “other” LGBT Poles using discursive means, and how they frame homophobia within their broader populist discourse and instrumentalise it for political gains. I compare my findings to the findings from an analysis of Law and Justice’s anti-migration discourse ahead of the 2015 parliamentary election. The study is conducted within the framework of a larger study on “othering” as part of contemporary right-wing populism in Central and Eastern Europe. PiS vs LGBT. Kształtowanie obrazu „Innego” w przypadku ruchu LGBT jako element dyskursu populistycznej radykalnej partii prawicowej w PolsceArtykuł analizuje, w jaki sposób ruch LGBT jest przedstawiany jako „Inny” w celu dopasowania go do prawicowego populistycznego dyskursu, a tym samym jak jest wykorzystywany jako element strategii politycznej przez prawicowych populistycznych aktorów. Koncentruję się na Prawie i Sprawiedliwości, polskiej populistycznej partii radykalnej prawicy (u władzy nieprzerwanie od 2015 roku), której retoryka anty-LGBT nasiliła się na nowo przed wyborami do Parlamentu Europejskiego w 2019 roku. Przeprowadzając krytyczną analizę dyskursu (w oparciu o ramy analityczne Ruth Wodak i Martina Reisigla) wybranych tekstów i materiałów wizualnych z oficjalnej strony internetowej partii oraz kont jej czołowych członków na Twitterze, przeanalizowałam, jakimi środkami dyskursywnymi przedstawiciele partii kształtują obraz Polaków LGBT jako „Innych”, jak umieszczają homofobię w ramach szerszego populistycznego dyskursu i jak instrumentalizują ją dla uzyskania politycznych korzyści. Porównuję wyniki moich badań z wynikami analizy antymigracyjnego dyskursu Prawa i Sprawiedliwości przed wyborami parlamentarnymi w 2015 roku. Prace są prowadzone w ramach szerszego projektu na temat „inności” w ramach współczesnego prawicowego populizmu w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej.

Kleistův „Michael Kohlhaas“ jako výraz vášnivé touhy po dosažení spravedlnosti, jakož i další autorova díla vztahující se k problematice „práva a literatury“

The article deals with the work of Heinrich von Kleist (1777–1811) in terms of its relation to the problems of “law and literature”. It focuses on the fact that this German writer belongs to those great creators who attached extraordinary care to the question of law and justice in his work. At first, the paper deals shortly with the life of this important figure of the German letters. Then the main attention is paid to the nouvelle “Michael Kohlhaas” which might be considered as the most important of his works related to the “law and literature” topic. This is given especially by the general preset of the story in which the main hero fights for the achievement of the justice tirelessly even at the cost of sacrificing his family's happiness and his life. Next part of the paper makes us familiar with certain aspects of the plot. Finally, the other works of Kleist related to the problems of “law and literature” and legal questions involved are analyzed.

Election preferences of the inhabitants of West Pomerania in local elections in the Third Republic of Poland

Western Pomerania was said to be called as a stronghold of the left, for the Democratic Left Alliance both in the 1990s and at the beginning of the 21st century achieved some of the best results in the country. Only after the parliamentary and presidential elections in 2005 and the local government elections in 2006, the electoral preferences changed towards the center of the political scene. The Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland turned out to be the change, Law and Justice to a lesser extent. The article presents a political analysis of the voting preferences of the inhabitants of West Pomerania in the local government elections with regard to the three mentioned parties. The aim of the research was to analyze the direction in which the electorate goes. It was checked whether the SLD was permanently eliminated and how strong the dominance of the PO was. Furthermore it was examined whether PiS is a real threat to the PO RP and whether the SLD has a chance to regain its lost position. It seems that regardless of the attempts made, the position of the SLD after the 2006 elections is stable and there are no indications that the Alliance could dominate the analyzed region again. However, in spite of the fact that since 2006 the PO enjoys high support, since 2014 PiS has been achieving better and better results, depriving the PO RP hegemon in its position in 2006–2014.

SECURITY CULTURE IN THE FUNCTION OF CREATING A CULTURE OF PEACE

The current crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has destroyed many lives and economies of many countries around the world, has shown, more than ever, how much the need for security has become more pronounced. Due to uncertainty, fear of the unknown and permanent concern about how the crisis will affect them, their loved ones and their existence in general, people are trying to regain predictability, order and control in their lives. Of course, this includes all aspects of “security”: emotional security, physical security, financial security, the effectiveness of law and justice, freedom from fear, social stability, security of property, health and well-being. stress, and even today they face a life in which there is little order and predictability. Although rational beings, they have not yet adopted a security culture as a kind of skill of living, which is a precondition for creating cultures of peace and non-violence, which is key to human existence and prosperity.

Polityka transatlantycka rządów Prawa i Sprawiedliwości (2015-2019): koncepcja (cz. 2)

Law and Justice party was a “Euro-Atlantic” political party in the whole period of its political existence. Three major characteristic features of political thought in the foreign affairs of Law and Justice party were: 1) an Atlantic course; 2) a concept of realism in the European Union; and 3) postulated subjectivity in the Central Europe and towards the Eastern Europe. Law and Justice party created its own concept of the role of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation in the security policy of the Republic of Poland. Law and Justice waited until the occurrence of good conditions to bring the wrought concept into reality. It was more than sure that such conditions will occur in the future. There was no doubt that Russia was danger for the Western hemisphere. Such an evaluation was strengthened in the years 2008-2010 as the consequence of the Russian aggression on Georgia and Smolensk catastrophe. Law and Justice waited to: 1) win the parliamentary elections; 2) the end of the policy of reset in Russian-American relations. The theoretical and ideological premises and the type of political competition in Poland justified a negative evaluation by Law and Justice party of the foreign policy of Poland towards NATO in the period of the left–wing – agrarian government coalition and the government coalition of liberal – agrarian parties. Law and Justice party remained critical of the foreign policy of Poland led by Civic Platform in the scope of its theoretical, conceptual and decisive senses.

Why Decriminalise Prostitution? Because Law and Justice Aren’t Always the Same

Leigh Goodmark’s work on domestic violence argues for alternatives to criminal justice to ‘solve’ issues of gendered violence. The criminalisation of sex work and prostitution is rarely discussed in this context—a rather odd omission given the increasing trend towards ‘criminalising demand’ and counter-calls for decriminalisation in this domain. In this article, we bring the two debates into conversation, using Goodmark’s work to bring analytical clarity to the prostitution debate and connect sex work to wider social justice debates in feminist anti-violence circles. We aim to move the conversation beyond retribution and the view that law is justice to outline a vision of justice for sex workers grounded in the principles of rights, recognition and representation. By contextualising the decriminalisation of prostitution within the framework of a wider anti-carceral justice movement, we seek to build alliances for social justice that transcend the current divide.