When Do Local Governments Discriminate? Lessons from the Diffusion of “LGBT Free Zones” in Poland

Between 2019 and 2020, amidst national-level democratic backsliding under the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, a wave of Polish municipal governments adopted a template of discriminatory policies, creating so-called “LGBT Free Zones” and countering a growing trend of “human rights cities.” What factors might explain this discriminatory diffusion? Drawing on three research traditions regarding diffusion—the social movement literature on direct/indirect linkages between individuals, an intergovernmentalist perspective on the kinds of relations between governmental units, and the Europeanization literature—we explain variation in the enactment of “zones” across 2,477 municipalities using a multinomial logit model. We find that local “zones” are most likely implemented, first, where direct channels link local elected officials to PiS's party network and, second, where higher-level units (counties) also implement “zones,” indicating that government-to-government networks also catalyze diffusion. Finally, we find diffusion less likely among geographic neighbors insofar as municipalities perceive enacting “zones” as costly.