Kubal Agnieszka, Who Are the Humans Behind Human Rights in Poland? Preliminary Remarks on a Sociological Profile of Victims Before the ECtHR (Kto stoi za prawami człowieka w Polsce? Uwagi wstępne na temat profilu socjologicznego skarżących, których skargi trafiły przed Europejski Trybunał Praw Człowieka)

This paper takes a first step at introducing the sociological profile of applicants from Poland who apply to the ECtHR, drawing on Max Weber’s concept of ideal types – operationalized here as heuristics that allow the social scientists to organize their empirical material from an exploratory study. It paints a rich empirical and historical picture of the first victim from Poland, Mrs. Proszak, and contrasts her profile with that of recent applicants in strategic LGBTQ+ litigation cases – public advocates for legal change. Analytically, this paper makes a case for treating these two profiles of victims as opposite ends of a spectrum, with many in-between cases yet to be introduced through further sustained sociological investigation.