Seizing on European Institutions? Ethnic Minority Actors’ Strategies in the Polish Public Sphere
Seizing on European Institutions? Ethnic Minority Actors’ Strategies in the Polish Public Sphere

Summary/Abstract: This article provides an overview of how ethnic minority and state actors in Poland draw on the European Union and other supranational institutions in their publicized claims. Its objectives are twofold. First, the article relies on the new institutionalism, political opportunity structure and sociology of culture perspectives to interpret the impact of supranational organizations on the domestic public debate in Poland. Second, drawing on the claims-analysis method, it examines the extent to which ethnic minority leaders seized the opportunity to address supranational organizations and legislation on minority rights protection promoted by these institutions. The analysis reveals that ethnic minorities do not take full advantage of the novel political circumstances and only seldom refer to the supranational organizations and symbols. The findings contradict the hypotheses stemming from the new institutionalism and the political opportunity structure approaches and provide support for the sociology of culture perspective.

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