Polish Minister of Equality Accused of Homophobia

Poland's minister for equality has been accused of homophobia after outing a gay man on television while arguing over the right of Catholic school officials to fire gay teachers, reports European news website Pink News.

Elżbieta Radziszewska told Catholic newspaper Gosc Niedzielny she believes Catholic schools should be allowed to fire or refuse to employ gay or lesbian teachers, although she later said she would defend a teacher sacked from a state school for his or her sexual orientation.

On Tuesday Radziszewska appeared on a morning talk show show on TVN24 and angered many more people when she apparently outed Krzysztof Śmiszek, the deputy president of the Polish Society of Anti-Discrimination Law, while using him as an example of why cases should be treated individually.

“If, for example, Mr Śmiszek, in a situation when we know that he is a member of the homosexual society and an activist for the Campaign Against Homophobia and it's no secret who his partner is ... ” Warsaw Business Journal reports Radziszewska telling the morning show host.

“This is pure homophobia,” Śmiszek said to Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza following the TV appearance. “In no other EU country would such a person still hold their post. I do not hide my sexual orientation, but it's my private business. My personal rights have been violated.”