Grzegorz Braun
Grzegorz Braun | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Grzegorz Braun in 2024 | |
| Member of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland | |
| Assumed office November 12, 2019 | |
| Constituency | Rzeszów |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Grzegorz Michał Braun March 11, 1967 Toruń, Poland |
| Nationality | Polish |
| Political party | Konfederacja |
| Alma mater | University of Wrocław |
| Occupation | Politician, movie director, screenwriter, academic teacher |
| Signature |  |
Grzegorz Michał Braun (born March 11, 1967)[1] is a Polish politician, having served as a member of the Polish parliament since 2019 in representing the Konfederacja ("Confederation") party.
Early life
[change | change source]Grzegorz Braun was born in Toruń, Poland.[2][better source needed] He is the son of Kazimierz Braun, a theater director, and Zofia Reklewska-Braun, a journalist.[3][4][better source needed] He studied Polish philology at the University of Wrocław, where he completed his master's degree.[2][5][better source needed]
Career
[change | change source]Grzegorz Braun is known for his work as a film director and screenwriter. He directed several documentaries, often focusing on Polish history and politics. Notable works include Towarzysz generał and Transformacja.[clarification needed] He has also taught at various academic institutions, including the University of Wrocław and University of Opole.[2][5]
Politics
[change | change source]Braun's political career began with his candidacy for President of Poland in the 2015 election, where he ran as an independent and received 0.83% of the votes. In 2019, he was elected to the Polish parliament as a representative of the Konfederacja.[5] Within the parliament, Braun is known for his highly conservative and nationalist views. He strongly opposes the European Union, backing Polish independence and traditional values.[2][5][better source needed]
Loss of parliamentary immunity
[change | change source]On May 6, 2025, the European Parliament removed his parliamentary immunity, meaning that he could be charged for any crimes he might have committed.[6]
Personal life
[change | change source]Grzegorz Braun is married to Aleksandra Gruziel. He continues to be active in both his political and film-making careers, balancing his roles as a lawmaker and an artist.[7][better source needed]
Controversies
[change | change source]Antisemitism
[change | change source]2023
[change | change source]In June 2023, Canadian historian Jan Grabowski[a] held a seminar on Poland's history of antisemitism in Warsaw. Grzegorz Braun smashed Grabowski's microphone and forced the seminar to be cancelled.[9] During the 2023 Hanukkah, he put out a menorah with a fire extinguisher in the Polish parliament.[10] He was expelled from the parliament and charged with hate crimes.[10] He was heard accusing Jews of being the "enemies of Poland" trying to "take over Poland"[11] and "place Poles in reservations".[12] Braun's behavior caused global outrage,[11] while being praised by users on Reddit's subreddit r/Poland (1.1M subscribers) who claimed to be "only anti-Israel". The subreddit is noted for antisemitism.[13] Despite Braun's actions, he was elected to the European Parliament in June 2024.[14]
2024
[change | change source]In December 2024, Braun held protests outside the Polish parliament while the Hanukhah was celebrated inside. He repeated the false claims that "non-Jews are treated as cattle in Judaism", accusing Jews of wanting to turn Poles into "slaves" and "subhumans" as Nazi Germans did.[15] His views are shared by many Western "anti-Zionists".[16]
Related pages
[change | change source]Footnotes
[change | change source]- ↑ A chair professor of history at University of Ottawa who won several awards for his books about the Holocaust in Poland.[8]
References
[change | change source]- ↑ "Grzegorz Braun". Sejm. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Grzegorz Braun – Encyklopedia Solidarności". 2020-10-25. Archived from the original on 2020-10-25. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ↑ "Grzegorz Michał Braun (ID: sw.62310)". sejm-wielki.pl. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
- ↑ "Żydowskie korzenie Grzegorza Brauna? – Konfederacja Korony Polskiej" (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-07-28.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 "Grzegorz Braun: pochodzenie, rodzina, partia, gaśnica. Kim jest kontrowersyjny poseł? - Wiadomości Radio ZET". wiadomosci.radiozet.pl (in Polish). 2024-01-16. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
- ↑ Krzysztoszek, Aleksandra (May 7, 2025). "EU lifts immunity of Polish far-right presidential candidate". Euractiv. Retrieved June 8, 2025.
- ↑ Pruska-Wiszniowska, Anna (2014-12-09). "Ślub Grzegorza Brauna w rycie łacińskim, tradycyjnym". radiownet.pl. Archived from the original on 2018-12-31. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
- ↑
- "Jan Grabowski - Member Profile - University of Ottawa". University of Ottawa. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- "Dr. Jan Grabowski". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- "Professor Jan Grabowski wins the 2014 Yad Vashem International Book Prize". Yad Vashem. December 4, 2014. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- "2022 Impact Awards—Insight Award winner: Jan Grabowski". Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council – Government of Canada. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- "Important Statement from Museum President and CEO and Board Chair". Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
Dr. Jan Grabowski, a distinguished Holocaust historian, has been an outspoken critic of Poland's distortion of history, facing harassment and even death threats over his scholarly research.
- "U of O Holocaust scholar says he's a target of Polish 'hate' campaign". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. February 17, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- ↑
- "Far-right MP forces abandonment of Holocaust scholar's lecture at German institute in Warsaw". Notes from Poland. May 31, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Far-right Polish MP violently interrupts Holocaust scholar's lecture at German institute in Warsaw". European Jewish Congress. June 1, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Far-right Polish MP violently interrupts Holocaust scholar's lecture at German institute in Warsaw". Jewish News. June 2, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Polish radical right-wing MP disrupts lecture on Holocaust". DW News. June 1, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Lecture on Holocaust in Poland canceled after far-right lawmaker storms podium". The Times of Israel. June 2, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Wright, George (January 18, 2024). "Grzegorz Braun: Polish MP who doused Hanukkah candles loses immunity". BBC News. Retrieved August 15, 2024.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1
- "Far-right Polish MP Just Took a Fire Extinguisher to a Menorah in Parliament". VICE. December 12, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Watch: Far-Right MP uses fire extinguisher to snuff out Hanukkah candles". The Telegraph. December 12, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- Kika, Thomas (December 13, 2023). "Polish MP Rails Against 'Satanic' Jews After Extinguishing Menorah". Newsweek. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Far-right Polish MP charged after extinguishing parliament's Hanukkah candles". The Times of Israel. April 9, 2024. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- ↑ "Far-right Polish lawmaker Grzegorz Braun douses menorah in parliament - CBS News". CBS News. December 12, 2023. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
- ↑ Examples:
- "A Polish depute Grzegorz Braun extinguishes the Jewish menorah on Hanukkah inside the Polish Parliament 12.12.2023". Reddit. December 12, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Jewish grudge against Poles". Reddit. 10 June 2024. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Why do Israeli school groups travel with armed guards in Poland?". Reddit. 10 September 2024. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- ↑
- "Polish MP who doused menorah wins higher office". Israel Hayom. June 10, 2024. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
Grzegorz Braun gained notoriety last December for extinguishing a Hanukkah menorah in the Polish parliament with a fire extinguisher, labeling Judaism as a "cult of the Talmud and Satan."
- "Polish MP who doused menorah in antisemitic attack elected to European Parliament". Jewish News Syndicate. June 10, 2024. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Polish 'bad boys' to join new EU house". Euractiv. June 11, 2024. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- "Polish MP who doused menorah wins higher office". Israel Hayom. June 10, 2024. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- ↑ "Polish parliament celebrates Hanukkah amid far-right protest outside". Notes from Poland. December 30, 2024. Retrieved June 10, 2025.
- ↑ Gillott, Hannah (August 20, 2024). "Online antisemites' new frontier? The Talmud". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved March 25, 2025.