| Joanna Senyszyn | |
|---|---|
| vice-president of SLD, member of the European Parliament | |
| In office September 25, 2005 – ? |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | 1949 |
| Nationality | Polish |
| Political party | Democratic Left Alliance |
Joanna Senyszyn(Polish pronunciation: [jɔˈanna sɛˈnɨʂɨn]; born February 1, 1949 in Gdynia) is a Polish left-wing politician, vice-president of the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) and member of the European Parliament.
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In the 1970s, Senyszyn was a member of the Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR), the governing party in the communist People's Republic of Poland. In 1980 she joined Solidarność, of which she continued to be a member until 1995. Later, she joined SLD and was a successful candidate in the 2001 parliamentary election from the Democratic Left Alliance-Labor Union (SLD-UP) list, becoming a member of the Sejm. She was also a candidate in the European Parliament election in 2004, but did not win a seat. In 2005, she secured herself another Sejm term in the election (getting 11925 votes in district 26 Gdynia) and became a vice-president of her party. Since 2009 she's a member of the European Parliament.
Joanna Senyszyn is often featured in the media, in no small way thanks to her brash manners, expressive image and distinctive, high-pitched voice. Her public appearances, both in the Sejm and on other occasions, are often marked by the use of provocative language and satire. She is credited with coining the term kaczyzm to describe her political opponents of the Prawo i Sprawiedliwość government. She also raised some controversy (and gained media attention) when she paraphrased the words of the late Pope John Paul II during the so called Parada Równości, a demonstration promoting LGBT rights in Poland coupled with a gay pride parade.
Senyszyn frequently criticizes Roman Catholic Church in Poland, in her internet blog (www.senyszyn.blog.onet.pl), she called it impudent, spiritless, rich, unpunished and brazen. In return, bishop Tadeusz Pieronek said that she should be pasturing cattle instead.
She has her own column in Roman Kotlinski's (former catholic priest) anti-clerical "Fakty i Mity" (Facts and Myths) weekly.
Joanna Senyszyn holds the academic rank of Professor ordinarius and holds the chair in market research at the University of Gdańsk, where she also served as the Dean of the Faculty of Business Administration before being elected to the Sejm.
Joanna Senyszyn is married to Bolesław Senyszyn, a lawyer from Gdynia. According to her Sejm declaration of interest, she drives a 2004 Honda CR-V and a 1996 Volvo 850.