They live in Sztum, Bochnia, and Warsaw. They work, pay taxes, and bring up their children. Outside working hours, they fight for equality, to counter discrimination in government authorities, for openness in schools, and for kids like themselves not to have to constantly flee to the capital.

Surveys have shown that Poland is the least friendly place for LGBT+ people to live in the entire European Union. Below are three stories of people who are trying to change that.

There is silence, for example, on the other end of the line, somewhere in between phrases like: “Is this the right number?”, “Can I take up some of your time?”, “I don’t really know why I’m calling…”.

Silence can also choke you, for example during therapy, when you have to think back to events that took place a year ago, too terrifying to put into words. Even if the words can be found, silence ensures that they do not find their way out.

Fathers who go on parental leave say that it is the best decision that they could have made – say the women who founded the Share the Care Foundation – surveys prove that this makes a relationship more stable, reduces the divorce and separation rate, and is highly beneficial for the emotional and cognitive development of children. At the same time, it helps women pursue a career and gives them equal opportunities to compete with men on the job market.

Often, young people who are homeless are invisible. They wear fashionable clothes, the girls have make-up on, and are constantly on the phone. An increasing number of them have a home, and even have their own room, but their parents are unable to deal with them. This is truly horrifying, because it reveals the grave state of the family in Poland – says Agnieszka Sikora of the Secondly Foundation.