Polish publicist Wojciech Sumliński collected hundreds of thousands of zloty through online fundraising campaigns, but faced criticism over the use of funds and unfulfilled promises.
Background of the Fundraising Campaigns
Wojciech Sumliński, a right-wing publicist, launched an online fundraising campaign in 2021 to support his film “Powrót do Jedwabnego” (Return to Jedwabne), which suggested that Polish residents were not responsible for a mass murder of Jews in Jedwabne. The campaign collected around 450,000 zloty.
Unfulfilled Promises and Removed Content
After YouTube removed Sumliński’s channel for violating hate speech policies, he launched another campaign called “STOP cenzurze wolnych mediów!” (STOP censorship of free media!) and promised to build a website to host his content. Despite collecting over 290,000 zloty, he neither sued YouTube nor created the promised website.
Further Fundraising and Controversy
Sumliński initiated additional fundraising campaigns for a memorial and an exhibition space. One campaign, which aimed to create an alley of memory, collected at least 107,000 zloty but was removed. Another campaign for a “Pomnik prawdy” (Monument of Truth) collected over 418,000 zloty. However, the land purchase for the monument was disputed, and the project was criticized.
Investigation and Response
The public prosecutor’s office is investigating the content of the monument’s tablets, which claimed that the Jedwabne massacre was committed by Germans. Sumliński responded to criticism, stating that Polish law offered him no chance of winning a lawsuit against YouTube and blaming the Zrzutka.pl portal for removing his fundraising campaigns.
