Nowe oblicza społecznikostwa w Polsce/ New modes of social activism in Poland (original) (raw)
Related papers
The Great Comeback of the Solidarity Idea in 1980. Polish Social Movement and Late Modernity, 2022
The idea of solidarity returned to post‐war intellectual discourse thanks to the social and trade union movement Solidarity (Solidarność), which was born in Poland in 1980. Its originality lies primarily in the renewal of the ideal of freedom and democracy at the end of the 20th century. To understand the uniqueness of that event, I interpret the turn of the 1970s and 1980s as a new phase in the development of modernity, which is moving into late modernity. It consists of economic fundamentalism with a neo‐liberal market economy (Thatcher, Reagan, Deng Xiaoping), anti‐leftist politics, as well as the return of religion in political life (Ayatollah Khomeini, John Paul II). Solidarity was born as a counterpoint to the first two phenomena, drawing inspiration from leftist traditions and Christian ethics. I then reconstruct the meaning of the idea of solidarity as it took shape in 1980–1981, analysing the notion of emancipatory, agonistic and political solidarity. Interpreting Lech Wałęsa’s Nobel Prize speech and excerpts from the most important programmatic document of the Solidarity movement, the Self‐governing Republic, I reconstruct the notion of political solidarity. Concepts of freedom, equality, dignity, truth and non‐violence allow to reconstruct the core content of the political notion of solidarity. Thus the Solidarity trade union movement is interpreted as the renewal of the Enlightenment promise of freedom – the universal freedom of every citizen.
2019
The paper portrays the origins and ideological foundations of NSZZ “Solidarity” (Independent Self-governing Trade Union “Solidarity”) and their meaning in social life at the time of the communist regime in PRL (Polish People’s Republic). There are references to strikes (June ‘56 in Poznan, polish March ’68, June ’76, July ’80 in Lublin and Swidnica and August ’80) and, in 1980, the creation of Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee, which developed and published 21 demands aimed at the authorities. In the study, it is acknowledged that those demands are the ideological sources of Solidarity. The author of the text thinks that John Paul II sermons and encyclicals as well as Fr. Jozef Tischner’s texts (published in the book Etyka solidarności oraz Homo sovieticus – Solidarity’s ethics and homo soviecticus) also had an influence on the formation of these ideas, which could bring back moral order, the rule of law, dignity and freedom for the society enslaved by Soviets. “Solidarity” also des...
The existence of social self-organization – assuming various forms and adopting versatile objectives – within a culturally, economically and politically organized multidimensional coexistence seems to be an unassailable fact. However, a careful analysis of political doctrines as well as the data pertaining to history proves it to be not so readily acknowledged. In fact, not every form of organized civilization, a state being one of its manifestations, accepts the existence of this substance of social life. Hence it is requisite to delineate more precisely the semantics of a wider context for our reflections. This includes the models of organized civilization relevant to our discourse as well as a potential social substance of a broadly defined non-governmental circles, featuring actors of the so-called third sector. Considering the complexity of the issues under consideration we will adopt an interdisciplinary approach, referring to philosophical schools of political thought, analysing source materials of multifarious research on the non-governmental sphere in Poland, as well as undertake a sociological method of participatory action research. Many persons would subscribe to the statement that the construction of social and state structures is among the most fundamental effects of deliberate civilization-shaping endeavours of humans intending to shape their life environment. A wide spectrum of possible solutions in this respect is embodied by theoretical reflection on the forms of social organization as well as by practice documented in history. On the one hand one may discern the forms that constrain or even rule out the existence of autonomous subjects in social, political, economic or cultural life, or in just one of them. Varying in their nomenclature and the message they carry, these systems’ common denominator rests in curtailing or refusing citizens their civic entitlements, be it relating to liberty, social life, solidarity, or – as it commonly occurs – a combination thereof. Diametrically opposed to these state solutions are models that recognize – in one way or another, depending on the tradition of the underpinning political thought – the citizen presence and citizen activity as the centre of the broadly defined public life. The civil society is one of the indicators of these forms of social and state organization. It is sine qua non prerequisite of the actual – not merely declarative – materialization of initiatives and operation of non-governmental organizations and of their contribution to creating a structured space for human coexistence. In pondering the place and role of the non-governmental organizations [NGOs] and initiatives within organized civilization, we will focus on such forms thereof which endorse civil society. We use the term not to denote a single political thought or its historical articulation, but rather – generally speaking – a certain area defined by certain political theories as well as their practical applications containing the said distinctive feature.
Solidarity Practices in Poland and Their Social Capital Foundations
Solidarity in Europe, 2018
Poland is a country where the idea of solidarity is primarily associated with the "Solidarity" social movement which had a substantial influence on political change and democratization (Krzeminśki 2010; Staniszkis 2010). However, while "Solidarity" as a movement and as a value was very important in the times of the fall of the communist system, the subsequent transformation period is often perceived as a "defeat of Solidarity" (Ost 2006), both in the institutional and attitudinal dimensions of public life. A significant literature points to low levels of social solidarity in Poland which is often linked to a relatively weak civic tradition and faint social capital, in particular trust (
‘Solidarity’ as a community of civil society
Skhid, 2019
The proposed research analyzes the external and internal factors that determine the specificity of Solidarity as a community of civil society and driving force of social and cultural changes in Poland. The external factors of these processes are connected with the critical interpretation of social cynicism and 'Marxist collectivism' by autonomic group in Polish society. These processes of social corrosion are considered as a social alienation and consequences of social fragmentation in Soviet period. The paper focuses on the danger of collision between national and colonial versions of memory as well as the social challenge of guarantee the possibility of an integral development of man and community. The internal factors actualizes the interpretation of Solidarity as a community of social changes, the positive activities of Catholic church, religious and secular leaders, of their theoretical ideas in the context of evolution of Solidarity from traditional community to modern one based on democratic values, social and economic motivations. The analysis is centered on the theoretical problem of civil trust, and the meaning of cultural, religious, and moral factors in the activities of Solidarity movement. We regard the problematic of Solidarity at the same time from republican and liberal positions. Synthesizing the different approaches to the historical memory, and to the experience of formation and evolution of community, the paper also explores the role and significance of Solidarity in the process of post-soviet values transformation. The article deals with the value prerequisites of moral-normative community in the country of the former socialist camp, the revival of national identity, as well as the elimination of historical contradictions provoked by the communist regime. The study confirms that social changes became possible due to the successful combination of communitarian and liberal foundations of civil society, the elimination of external influences, and achieving autonomy from the Russian and Soviet historical heritage. In the period of Soviet occupation in Poland, throughout two decades a fundamentally important intellectual discourse was formed, which, in spite of the unfavorable political context, became a consolidating and integrating socio-political force that successfully resisted the totalitarian and unifying tendencies of communist regime. Intellectuals, along with the Catholic church, have become a driving force for social change, playing a key role in shaping the social strategy of national development that has changed the social landscape of 'communist' Poland.
THE SOLIDARITY’S MOVEMENT IN POLAND 1980-1889
The battle against communism in Europe was won not by weapons, but by civil resistance. Late 1980s marked the moment in which the power of the people undermined and eventually destroyed communism in Europe. The dissolution of the Warsaw Pact, the end of the Soviet empire and of Soviet totalitarianism, and eventually of the Soviet Union itself are just some of the major consequences that followed. The story of how all this was achieved must start with Poland. The Polish people have been struggling with communism from the moment it came into power in 1946, but it was not before the end of the 1970s that the society managed to organize itself, which led to the creation of Solidarność (“Solidarity”) – the first independent trade union in the Communist bloc, which quickly turned into a mass movement in 1980s. The establishment of Solidarity did not go without challenges, but its nonviolent character and strong relations with the Catholic Church and the Western countries attracted a huge number of followers and created the possibility for the development and flourishing of new institutions, activities, and discourses. Solidarity managed to win its battle when, on June 4, 1989, its candidates gained a massive victory against the communist candidates in elections for the Sejm (parliament). This way Poland gave way for democracy and started a chain-reaction that led to a number of peaceful anti-communist revolutions, which very rapidly brought about political change in Eastern Europe.