“The Lawyers for Poland Association has filed a notification with the District Prosecutor’s Office in Łódź of a suspected crime: a group of people – Catholics – was insulted because of their religion, and there were calls to commit the crime of murder against Catholics”, the association said on social media.
On Saturday, a march in solidarity with refugees organized by left-wing circles took place in the streets of Łódź. Banners carried by participants read: “F*** your borders,” “Abortion is a human right,” and “Refugees welcome.” However, the greatest outrage was sparked by chants led by a masked individual with a megaphone and repeated by the crowd. “Catholics, you ***, Antifa will murder you”, can be heard in a video shared on social media.
It is worth recalling that Article 256 of the Polish Criminal Code states, among other things, that anyone who incites hatred based on differences (nationality, race, religion, etc.) is subject to a penalty of up to three years’ imprisonment. The same penalty is provided for in Article 257, which stipulates that publicly insulting a group or an individual because of their national, ethnic, racial, or religious affiliation is also punishable by up to three years in prison.
Moreover, both offenses are prosecuted ex officio. In this context, Gazeta Polska Codziennie contacted both the police and the prosecutor’s office to determine what actions had been taken against the aggressive demonstrators.
“We are conducting explanatory proceedings in connection with securing this march. Evidence is being collected, including CCTV recordings, which will allow us to determine the identity of this person”, said Kamila Sowińska, press officer for the Municipal Police Commander in Łódź, in a statement to Gazeta Polska Codziennie. When asked whether the individual shouting hateful slogans through a megaphone had been identified, she clarified: “The identity of this person has not yet been established.”
Gazeta Polska Codziennie also contacted the prosecutor’s office in Łódź. More on this in the article: Delayed response of services to threats against Catholics. “Catholics, you ***, Antifa will murder you”
“Lawyers for Poland” respond. Notification to the prosecutor’s office
In connection with the events that took place on March 28, 2026, in Łódź, the Lawyers for Poland Association submitted a notification to the District Prosecutor’s Office in Łódź regarding a suspected criminal offense.
As stated in the document, the notification concerns “public incitement to commit the crime of murder against persons professing the Catholic faith (…) and the public insult of a group of people – followers of the Catholic religion”.
According to the authors of the document, during the march “at least one of its participants used a megaphone to chant: ‘Catholics, f* off, Antifa will murder you’”. Attention was also drawn to banners present at the gathering, including one reading: “F* your borders”.
The notification emphasizes that such statements should be treated as incitement to violence. The authors refer to criminal law doctrine, indicating that incitement is “a general encouragement (…) addressed to unspecified persons”, which may take the form of public chants during assemblies.
In the association’s view, in this case “it is impossible to interpret the phrases used by the perpetrators otherwise (…) therefore, without doubt, the act (…) fulfills the elements of an offense under Article 255 §2 of the Criminal Code”, i.e., public incitement to commit a crime.
The authors of the notification also address the issue of insult. As emphasized, “referring to any religious group with the word ‘c*s’ constitutes an insult within the meaning of Article 257 of the Criminal Code”**, and the phrases used during the march “constituted a public insult against Catholics due to their religious affiliation”.
A separate section of the document concerns the banner referring to borders. According to the complainants, “it is impossible to interpret this banner as a call (…) to engage in sexual intercourse with the ‘borders of the Republic of Poland’”, and its use may constitute at least a misdemeanor, and potentially also the crime of insulting public officials.
The association requests the initiation of proceedings and a thorough investigation of the case, including determining the intent of the march participants and their criminal liability.
At this stage, there is no information about any decisions by the prosecutor’s office in this case.