Izabella Antonina Sierakowska, née Kruszyńska (; 22 September 1946 – 31 March 2021) was a Polish

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

and one of the leading and the most popular persons of the Polish left.

Life

She was born in Góra Śląska. Her parents, Krystyna and Zbigniew Kruszyńskis were refugees from

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

. Zbigniew was a soldier, who fought in the Polish resistance during occupation and later continued his career. Sierakowska lived with her family in various places such as

Siedlce Siedlce [] ( yi, שעדליץ ) is a city in eastern Poland with 77,354 inhabitants (). Situated in the Masovian Voivodeship (since 1999), previously the city was the capital of a separate Siedlce Voivodeship (1975–1998). The city is situated b ...

Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of cant ...

. She graduated from college in

Rzeszów Rzeszów ( , ; la, Resovia; yi, ריישא ''Raisha'')) is the largest city in southeastern Poland. It is located on both sides of the Wisłok River in the heartland of the Sandomierz Basin. Rzeszów has been the capital of the Subcarpathian ...

in Russian philology. She worked as a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

since 1972 in prestige high school (liceum) named after

Stanisław Staszic Stanisław Wawrzyniec Staszic (baptised 6 November 1755 – 20 January 1826) was a leading figure in the Polish Enlightenment: a Catholic priest, philosopher, geologist, writer, poet, translator and statesman. A physiocrat, monist, pan-Slavis ...

. In 1970 she joined then-ruling communist

Polish United Workers' Party The Polish United Workers' Party ( pl, Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza; ), commonly abbreviated to PZPR, was the communist party which ruled the Polish People's Republic as a one-party state from 1948 to 1989. The PZPR had led two other lega ...

and was a delegate to the 10th PUWP convention in 1987. In 1989 she was elected to the Contract Sejm as PUWP member. After dissolution of the party she joined, as most former members did, newly formed

Social Democracy of Poland The Social Democracy of Poland ( pl, Socjaldemokracja Polska, SDPL) is a social-democratic political party in Poland. Foundation The party was founded in April 2004 as a splinter group from the post-communist Democratic Left Alliance (SLD). Th ...

(SdPl) and later

Democratic Left Alliance The Democratic Left Alliance () was a social-democratic political party in Poland. It was formed in 9 July 1991 as an electoral alliance of centre-left parties, and became a single party on 15 April 1999. It was the major coalition party in Pol ...

(SLD). Sierakowska remained a Sejm Member until 2005 elections, when she lost her seat. She was an outspoken supporter of

abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...

separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular sta ...

, and other leftist values. Sierakowska was also a critic of the

Leszek Miller Leszek Cezary Miller (Polish pronunciation: ; born 3 July 1946) is a Polish politician. He has served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since July 2019. From 1989 to 1990 was a member of the Politburo of the Polish United Workers' P ...

government and his role as SLD Leader. She urged a replacement of Miller with former

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Józef Oleksy Józef Oleksy (; 22 June 1946 – 9 January 2015) was a Polish left-wing politician, former chairman of the Democratic Left Alliance (''Sojusz Lewicy Demokratycznej'', SLD). Early life and education In his youth he lived in Nowy Sącz, and wa ...

. During her last term as MP, she served as Vice Chair of the National Defense Committee. Previously she was notable as one of the co-authors of the new constitution, which was adopted in 1997. Sierakowska left SLD with group of other members led by

Sejm Marshal The Marshal of the Sejm , also known as Sejm Marshal, Chairman of the Sejm or Speaker of the Sejm ( pl, Marszałek Sejmu, ) is the speaker (chair) of the Sejm, the lower house of the Polish Parliament. The office traces its origins to the 15th ...

Marek Borowski Marek Stefan Borowski (; born 4 January 1946 in Warsaw, Poland) is a Polish left-wing politician. He led the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) for a time and was Speaker of the Sejm (the lower, more powerful, house of Poland's parliament) from 200 ...

and founded

(SdPl). SdPl suffered a massive defeat in the 2005 Sejm election and lost all seats, when SLD won fourth place. She remained one of the SdPl leaders, and ran for Presidency of Lublin, where she had lived for many years, and won first place in the first round with 25.31% of vote. Before municipal elections, SdPl, SLD and the Democrats joined forces as Left and the Democrats coalition, a new political power still active. In turnout Sierakowska lost to

Civic Platform Civic Platform ( pl, Platforma Obywatelska, PO)The party is officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (''Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''). is a political party in Poland. It is currently led by Donald Tusk. It ...

candidate Adam Wasilewski. Despite defeat, she was elected the same year to the

Lublin Voivodeship The Lublin Voivodeship, also known as the Lublin Province ( Polish: ''województwo lubelskie'' ), is a voivodeship (province) of Poland, located in southeastern part of the country. It was created on January 1, 1999, out of the former Lublin, C ...

Sejmik. In 2007 she returned to the Sejm after being elected from

Lewica i Demokraci Left and Democrats ( pl, Lewica i Demokraci, LiD) was a centre-left electoral alliance of political parties in Poland which was created on 3 September 2006, before the Warsaw municipal election of 2006. The coalition's aim was to provide an ...

list. She finished her term in 2011.

References

External links

Official site (Polish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sierakowska, Izabella 1946 births 2021 deaths People from Góra Polish socialists Socialist feminists Democratic Left Alliance politicians Members of the Polish Sejm 1991–1993 Members of the Polish Sejm 1993–1997 Members of the Polish Sejm 1997–2001 Members of the Polish Sejm 2001–2005 Women members of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland 20th-century Polish women politicians 21st-century Polish women politicians Members of the Polish Sejm 2007–2011