The end of the USAID. Left-wing fever in Poland?

Leftist organizations in Poland have been on the verge of a tense breakdown for respective days. It is hard to be surprised: U.S. president Donald Trump made a decision on the consequences for many of these organizations just devastating. He suspended their financial assistance under the USAID programme. Left-wing media suffer, promigration groups suffer, and “progetic”. any of them found themselves in an impossible situation – without aid from the US government, they are simply threatened with liquidation.

Thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of dollars...

The list of organizations dependent on the U.S. relief program is impressive. Association for LGBT Tolerado ($49,7 thousand), Foundation We give Children the Force ($48,5 thousand, for LGBT Plus Me); Federation of Equality Signs (30 thousand), Herstory Foundation ($39,7 thousand); Foundation for agrarian Assistance ($100 thousand, including building LGBT community in agrarian areas) ... It's just a tiny part of a large left-wing environment that was getting American money, and I chose groups to open their doors. The numbers, individual will say, are not that big. A well-known LGBT activist “Bart” Staszewski wrote on the website “X” that making around this affair is unnecessary due to the fact that it is all about “small” money.

NOTE! A long list of organisations that have supported us from the U.S.

Are you sure? erstwhile you sum up all the subsidies that have been made in fresh years from the USAID for Procesional Organizations only, the amount will not be significant: we are talking about dollars, all this needs to be increased 4 more times to get a gold score... Meanwhile, all few, respective 1000 is to finance the monthly work of any left-wing activist. active in spreading subversive rainbow ideas, a man can do more than a month. Put it on all the months and years of activists...

What were the results of this money, it is not clear; but it was not in vain. But just a thought experiment: how many people were confused in Polish villages, supporting the construction of the LGBT agrarian communities? This is specific: individual might not care at all about the subject of the sexual revolution, but in their own village any materials were put into their hands. He got interested, read, started to change his mind... The drop digs the rock, not by force, but by frequent flooding. It was frequently not just a "drop". For example, the "Campania Against Homophobia" organization had PLN 350 000 promised for a social run on partnerships. However, he will not receive this money. As a result, there will not be a number of publications supporting the thought of single-sex relationships, or possibly any billboards and so on. If Trump USAID hadn't stopped, it would have all happened. There's a difference, right?

Election problem

Aid from the US could besides indirectly influence the result of the elections. An example of the "Election Lantern" is simply a well-known initiative to tell voters what organization they should vote for in relation to their views. The “Latarnik” was financed partially by EU funds, partially by the USAID (via the German Marshall Fund of the United States). The “Latarnik” is highly promoted in left and centre media. Interestingly, even any journalists from these media thought the initiative was "left-handed" – specified voices appeared in "TOK FM" or "Oko.press". Left-handedness would be based on a set of questions that would advance left-wing parties by clicking “yes” answers – which would be typical on the Internet. Indeed, if you approach the Lantern, even the version before the elections to the EP in 2024 suggested voting for KO or Lewica alternatively than for the PiS or the Confederation. On the another hand, erstwhile I myself did this "test" for the EP elections, the consequence was clearly "right". Left-wing critics of the “Latarnik” pointed out that the task was to be addressed mainly to undecided voters and, consequently, could simply reward the centre and the left, as a consequence of being a form of foreign-funded influence on the Polish elections. It is besides a very tangible concrete 1 – and the possible “left-handedness” of the Lantern is just a tiny thing. The real problem for Polish politics is the views spread by activists and journalists all over the left, based on abroad support...

Media problem

The money has besides been lost by media specified as “Political Criticism”, “Prequent Tygodnik” or “ Liberal Culture”. Each “several hundred” is an article. Left-wing propaganda can either poison the infosphere or not – it depends only on the money that now stops swimming... The network besides writes a lot about "Gazeta Wyborcza", which would receive PLN 20 million from USAID; however, the portal "Independent.pl", which provided this information, removed the article later. It would be vague information about the actual recipient of the aid; investigative journalists will most likely find it soon. However, it is known, for example, that ‘Gazeta Wyborca’ has collaborated with the entities of reporters representing themselves as ‘independent’ and receiving support from USAID. This occupation will just end now, due to the fact that for money from America – there is no alternative.

Unsupported journalists compose about it directly. On the seventh of February an article was published on “Trump cuts, bigtech changes the front. Is the Union up to the challenge, written by Wojciech Cieśla and Anna Gielewska from the “Reporters Foundation”. They admitted that a fewer years ago they deliberately decided to apply for abroad grants. Now, without support from the US, they are in a spot: there are no akin support programmes in the European Union. The carpenter and Gielewska mention examples of their activities and it is hard to deny that any of it could have been valuable (e.g. describing possible financial scandals involving politicians from the PiS camp). On the another hand, they besides wrote about "the increasing influences of Ordo Iuris", of course in an alarmistic approach. Now it's over.

Freezing the USAID, Donald Trump's administration gave the left-wing organizations in Poland a real painful blow. The debate, which opened after this decision, frequently points to a full shock: in the past, funds from America flowed to these groups regularly, not only for Biden, but besides for the "previous Trump". Although the leftist do not question Washington's right to halt support, they claim it will harm democracy.

Such a claim must be diversified. USAID funds flowed into Poland for many initiatives that were clearly ideological and leftist. This group includes LGBT organisations or, for example, various groups operating in the area of migration, besides receiving funds (e.g. Polish Migration Forum). The cut-off of their backing is clearly positive. I think even many Poles who are not convinced conservatives will agree. In the end, fewer people think that financing by a abroad power of a peculiar ideological task is simply a glorious thing – and that is what we have been dealing with.

A separate problem is the media, or any "journalist centres". It seems that critics of Donald Trump are right: good journalism is hard to keep on purely commercial grounds. People do not want to pay for reliable content, preferring to click on the free low quality content. In fresh years, there has been a dramatic fall in the online press. In this perspective, only “democratic aid” from the US or another countries could save honest journalism. This is not the case. No 1 is questioning the request to look at the government's hands and exposure financial scandals. This included, for example, the journalists mentioned above from the Reporters' Foundation. However, after Donald Tusk took over, they wrote about... Marcin Romanowski or Daniel Obiek. Who's looking at his hands here? Of course, these matters should besides be explained, but from a public interest position it is much more crucial to look at what the Tusk government ministers are doing, not people associated with the erstwhile camp of power. However, the support from Biden’s liberal administration evidently active a different direction of interest. In this way, foreign-granted journalism has frequently allowed itself to be brought into a political dispute, on 1 side.

For apparent reasons, we are discussing in fresh days the backing of organisations and media by the United States government. However, we must remember that USAID is just 1 part of the puzzle. There is inactive money in the game from many another countries, from Germany to Norway. In addition, there is simply a large amount of money transferred to Polish entities by private centres with the flagship Open Society Sorosa at the head.

Dependency – only from readers

The full thing, I think, should lead to 1 conclusion: it's worth betting on another model. For example, specified as PCh24.pl works in. Our portal is published by Fr Piotr Skarga Association. It is simply a Polish organization – supported only by Polish donors. No grants from the government in Warsaw, no grants from the government in Washington – not a penny from any organized entities. PCh24.pl works due to the fact that the readers of the portal and viewers of the PCh24 tv channel and all those who support the works of the Association of Fr. It seems that specified a model of functioning is an authentic warrant of independence: the only link we have is to submit to the religion of the Catholic Church and to the sympathy of those who want to benefit from our works. Sure, our work may not be good for many people: besides conservative, not adequate ecumenical, unsynodic... We compose and say what we believe and what we consider objectively actual – not what the financial proposition of abroad centres "encouraged" encourages.

One can only hope that in this way there will be more and more organizations and media, focusing on Poles and their own readers, not on abroad grants.

That, I think, is simply a substance of simple integrity.

Paweł Chmielewski

LIST OF ORGANISATIONS

The list – not complete – was published portal “Money.pl”. According to authors, task names were taken straight from USAspending.gov. We present here those elements of the list which have a clearly ideological effect.

1. Kulawa Foundation Warsaw (75 1000 dollars). Authorial theatre task – workshops and final performance with Polish youth with disabilities. September 2023-February 2025;
2. Tolerado LGBT Association ($49,7 thousand) Among others, the organisation of the 6th legislature of Marching Cities. September 2023-November 2024;
3. The Foundation Gives Children Strength (48,500 dollars). LGBT Plus Me: strengthening Polish youth as LGBT+ allies. September 2023 – November 2024;
4. Federation of Equality Signs (30 1000 dollars). Strengthening the position of LGBTQI+ members entering the labour market. Promotion of DEI certificate. September 2023-2024;
5. Herstory Foundation (20 + 19,7 1000 dollars). Building the possible of activists and service providers working with LGBTQI+ community in Poland through educational programs, workshops, mentor sessions for therapists, medical staff of educators. In addition, Rainbow Empowerment educational project;
6. We, parents – LGBTQIA Association of mothers and fathers of allies (16,5 1000 dollars). A task on household diversity. September 2021-July 2022;
7. Polish Anti-Discrimination Law Society (17,8 1000 dollars). Support for LGBTI rights in practice – training for lawyers. September 2021-December 2022;
8. Campaign Against Homophobia (14.9 1000 dollars). LGBTQIA corporate allies workshop. July 2022-October 2023;
9. Foundation for agrarian Assistance (84,1 1000 + 18,9 1000 dollars). Organisation of Leadership and mentoring workshops for 24 participants and building support communities for LGBT+ people in agrarian areas;
10. Jan Nowak-Jezioranski College of east Europe in Wrocław (80,000). Conducting training and supporting the improvement of content by Polish journalists in order to improve the quality of reporting on issues related to the situation of Ukrainians, including the return of refugees and reconstruction of their country (continues until May 2025). September 2024-December 2025;
11. Kazimierz Pulaski Foundation (74,8 1000 dollars). Building the possible and capacity to form the policy of the global centre of Ukrainian triumph and supporting Ukrainian civilian society activists based in Poland. June 2022–June 2023;
12. Demagog Association ($40,000). To cover the costs of organising an yearly programme on media literacy/fact checking. September 2024-June 2025;
13. European Space Foundation ($40,000). Partial costs of the Artemis Day project, which is part of the European Rover Challenge 2023 Inspiration Zone. April 2023-December 2025;
14. New Space Foundation ($39.8,000). Organisation of divided Artemis Generation. The aim of the task is to affect young enthusiasts of space exploration. August 2024-August 2025;
15. Pro Futuro Foundation ($20,000). Education programme for Ukrainian refugees: work in your field. September 2023-January 2024;
16. Oviro Foundation ($20,000). task cost coverage: intellectual assistance for deaf communities in Poland. August 2023-December 2024;
17. BoCity (17 1000 dollars). Partial costs related to the project: Silesia – the coal region in transition – an inclusive dialog for the transition to clean energy sources. August 2021-August 2022;
18. Galicia judaic Heritage Institute Foundation ($150,000). To support a three-year educational project: Education, memory, action. Building a network of teachers and educators across Poland. September 2024-June 2027;
19. Museum of past of Polish Jews Polin (60.3,000 dollars). Recruitment and travel of 12 teachers participating in the training program for Holocaust teachers in the US from 2020 to 2021. Program extended. March 2020 – December 2026;
20. The Forgotten Foundation ($20,000). Project: The Future of Our Past. Restoring the forgotten heritage of Polish Jews. September 2023-May 2024;
21. School with Class Foundation (137.5 1000 dollars). Youth projects for the public ("Impulse. School Change Workshop"). September 2024-May 2027;
22. Foundation Centre for Civic Education (a.k. 177 1000 dollars) to cover the costs of organising a 9-day civic academy of 2023 for advanced school students (March 2023-February 2025) and to cover the costs of the School of Democracy program for representatives of student local governments in Polish schools (August 2024-June 2025);
23. Kraków city of start-ups (18,1,000 dollars). Organization of 2 hackatons. September 2024-January 2025;
24. New Horizons Association ($35,000). Support for American movie Festival. August 2023 – January 2026;
25. Foundation for the ‘Common Week’ (10 1000 dollars). Partial costs of the “Reading Lesson” organisation in American literature project. June 2022-March 2023;
26. Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (9.2,000 dollars). U.S. documents: a show of American human rights documentary films at 24th MFF Watch Docs. August-December 2024;
27. John Paul II Public Library in Opole ($3,000). Programs and workshops on American culture, society and discipline and acquisition of books and DVDs in America@Your Library. September 2024-December 2025).