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Wojciech Olszański
 Wojciech Olszański (born 7 July 1960), also known as Jaszczur, is a Polish nationalist activist, film and theatre actor, filmmaker, livestreamer, and the founder of the far-right Rodacy Kamraci party. He is the stepfather of actress Michalina Olszańska. Early life and acting careerWojciech Józef Olszański was born on 17 July 1960 in Kłodzko.[1] In 1983, he graduated the AST National Academy of Theatre Arts in Kraków,[2] starting his career as a theatre actor. He earned an award for his performance in a Jerzy Trela rendition of Vladimir Mayakovsky's The Bedbug in 1983. From 1983 to 1987, he starred in plays at the National Theatre.[3] He later settled into a home life, taking care of his stepdaughter, Michalina Olszańska.[4] After 2000, he starred in supporting roles in various films, including Quo Vadis (2001) and Battle of Warsaw 1920 (2011),[2] alongside participating in historical reenactments.[5] ActivismOlszański first gained popularity in 2016, when he set up a YouTube channel using the pseudonym Aleksander Jabłonowski. He gained a large following on his channel, Niezależna Polska TV, which was repeatedly restricted by YouTube because of its violent and anti-Semitic content.[6][7] Wojciech Olszański also cofounded the "National Polish Front" (Polish: Narodowy Front Polski), which advocated for Polish withdrawal from the European Union and deportation of foreign immigrants, though he was expelled for disobedience in 2017.[2][8] Later, on 30 August 2023, he cofounded Rodacy Kamraci (English: Compatriot Comrades) and contended in the 2023 Polish parliamentary election, but failed to sign any candidates.[9] Political viewsOlszański personally considers himself a fascist, nationalist, and Stalinist.[10] He supports an alliance with Vladimir Putin-ruled Russia and supports the rule of Alexander Lukashenko in Belarus.[6] He has spread COVID-19 misinformation, stating that the virus is controlled by the United States Army.[2] He believes the United States is Poland's greatest enemy[11] and often attacks the LGBT community.[12] He also advocates for the full legalization of abortion.[13] He is a sedevacantist.[14] In addition to these views, Olszański believes in national communism, reflecting positively on the Polish People's Republic[15] and praising Ivan Serov[16][17] and Bolesław Piasecki.[13] ControversiesOlszański has been the subject of several lawsuits and controversies. He has been sued for, among other things, slapping another man during Warsaw Uprising commemorations in 2017,[18] attacking a Belarusian student with pepper spray in 2021 for participating in pro-democratic movements,[6] burning down a copy of the Statute of Kalisz during an Independence Day parade that same year,[19] and calling for the murder of deputies to the Sejm during an anti-vaccine protest in 2022.[20] On 1 November 2022, he was arrested and sentenced to 6 months of imprisonment.[21] He finished serving the sentence on 30 April 2023 and was promptly freed.[22] However, on 30 August 2022, he had also been sentenced to 2 years in prison and community service by the Warsaw-Mokotów Regional Court, a sentence he is currently serving as of October 2024.[23] There has been a large amount of debate over the legitimacy of his beliefs, as he was a film and theatre actor in the past.[2][12][24][25] Rafał Pankowski called him a "popular, aggressive supporter of a racist form of pan-Slavism which translates over to his support for Lukashenko's rule in Belarus".[11] He has also been criticized by Marian Kowalski, another nationalist politician.[8] Personal lifeOlszański was married to Aleksandra Fatyga up to her death in 2020.[26] Through her, he is the stepfather of Michalina Olszańska.[2] FilmographyFilm
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