Stop calling
me murzyn

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“People sometimes point at me in the street and call me ‘murzyn’ (negro), as if they were talking about a thing, not a person. Another time a group of children shouted at me, ‘Go back to Africa’ (I have never been to Africa). At school, my younger brother was sworn at and beaten up because of his skin colour,” says 10-year-old Bianka Nwolisa, an ‘Afropole’, activist and – recently - an icon in the fight against racial discrimination in Poland.

Since 2013, Bianka’s parents, Lidka and Arinze Nwolisa, have been running the Porta foundation, which works to counter racist and discriminatory behaviour. During one of their workshops, they prepared a placard that said ‘Stop calling me Murzyn’, and on 4th June 2020, Bianka waved it outside the US embassy in Warsaw, protesting against police brutality in the African-American community.

A photo of Bianka carrying the placard went viral. It was shared several thousand times on social media, then published in magazines and daily newspapers, and then radio and television programmes began a discussion of the racist aspects of the Polish language. It also led to the creation of a petition calling for the word 'Murzyn' to be declared offensive.

Despite her young age, activism comes naturally to Bianka.

“I go to protests, give interviews, go to photo sessions, record videos and take part in the foundation's activities with my whole family. Recently, I have been activist on daily basis,” says Bianka. “All people are the same and deserve to be treated well. I want life in Poland to get better,” she adds.

The slogan on Bianka’s placard has electrified public opinion in Poland for several weeks. She has become the poster child for the fight against racism in Poland and is ready to continue her struggle with the support of her family.

“I feel that I have power, but I can use it to do good and not nonsense. My friends were surprised. But I told them that fame is not that easy.”

These pictures are part of Archive of Public Protests a platform for civic photography dedicated to socio-political tensions in contemporary Poland. It primarily collects the images of protests against violation of human rights,  constitution and independent judiciary system. The archive stands against discrimination, racism and homophobia which president Andrzej Duda has been criticised for in his election campaign.