40th
ANNIVERSARY OF THE SOLIDARITY BIRTH
1. Photo: Mateusz SĹ‚odkowski
The Solidarity revolution of 1980 which eventually led to
the collapse of communism in 1989 had all the attributes of a national uprising conducted by peaceful methods. The great social movement embodied the hopes of millions of Poles for a more dignified and better life. Solidarity restored the society’s subjective character and awoke considerable aspirations for freedom and self-government. The union taught people how to organize themselves,
express their thoughts and desires. Negotiations, agreements, and arrangements had to become the new method of exercising power. The Solidarity message remained in the minds of Poles. It manifested itself in full force after nine years, in 1989, when Poland became the first country that managed to topple the communist system and was followed by other countries of the so-called Eastern bloc.