Do Something Polish to Celebrate POLISH HERITAGE
MONTH

Since 1981, October is Polish Heritage Month (click here for a short history review), a month when Polish Americans are especially proud of their roots, culture, and achievements.

Belonging to a Polish organization – such as the Polish American Congress – is one way to celebrate the legacy of our ancestors and all those continuing it in the present time.

Participating in Polish-themed activities and events is another. Here are three October 2021 events, all taking place in the Polish Center of Wisconsin.

(click on images to download the associated pdfs)

October 13 at 7pm
THE THREE SEAS INITIATIVE:
WHO? WHAT? WHY?
Presented by Irena Frączek

Introducing the main objectives and major players of the Three Seas Initiative, this brief survey will explore the main economic challenges and geopolitical pressures that led to the forum’s formation and will play a role in its future. As the Three Seas effort continues to unfold before our eyes, knowing more about its multiple facets – both in the regional and global context – would make it easier to follow the news and render support needed for the initiative to continue forward.

October 20 at 7pm
THE POLISH VOTE in U.S.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS
Presented by Professor Donald Pienkos

Professor Pienkos looks at the data from the past 80 years – when the size of the Polish vote became truly significant in numbers, with special attention to those elections that were closely contested. His findings will surprise those who attend.

Sunday, October 24 at 2pm
The Cream City Quartet
performs music by Moniuszko,
Bach, Jacob, and Mozart

The Cream City Quartet is comprised of Milwaukee freelance performers and educators Linda Nielsen Korducki, flute; Elizabeth Warne, violin; Olga Tuzhilkov, viola; and Scott Cook, cello. These musicians have performed with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and are members of the Milwaukee Ballet Orchestra, Skylight Opera Theatre, the Fox Valley Symphony Orchestra, the Oshkosh Symphony Orchestra, and the Wisconsin Philharmonic. All four members serve on the faculties of Concordia University, Alverno College, Cardinal Stritch University, and the Cello Institute of Milwaukee.Ticket information is available HERE

ALL EVENTS HOSTED IN POLISH CENTER OF WISCONSIN
► Map of Location ◄

From April 14 through October 27, 2021
Polish Center of Wisconsin invites all to the

PCW Café
EVERY WEDNESDAY 4PM to 8 PM

Check the CAFÉ MENUfor specific days in advance

Monument
“For Our Freedom and Yours”
Unveiled in Stevens Point, Wisconsin

Text David Rydzewski
Photos Irena Frączek

In a Stevens Point, Wisconsin park, sited on the banks of the Wisconsin River, a monument of immense significance to Polonia, was dedicated on Saturday September 18, 2021.

With a Polish Legion of American Veterans color guard, the flags of Poland and the United States were set in place to begin the dedication. A moment later (in a scene that could have been scripted out of Hollywood) a bald eagle patrolling the banks of the river flew overhead.

The Monument “For Your Freedom and Ours” is a derivation of “Za naszą i waszą wolność” which comes from the unofficial motto of Poland. It was dedicated this day, as the creation of 1st generation Polish American artist Boleslaw Kochanowski.

Kochanowski was inspired by the Polish motto, which was a rallying cry used since 1830 to unite oppressed peoples from many nations. He says “the canted and skewed spires signify the difficulties of upholding and retaining justice and liberty. The cracked and broken tips of the spires indicate that freedom came with hardship and sacrifice.” He continues “Corten alloy and stainless steel are used for durability and permanence, signifying strength and longevity. These materials also differentiate the Polish white eagle and the American bald eagle.”

Moving to the podium was Master of Ceremonies Gayle Phillip. Gayle is the President of the Polish Heritage Awareness Society of Central Wisconsin. She began by welcoming the assembled guests to the Stevens Point “Cultural Commons” on this momentous day.

Gayle then introduced the first speaker, the Mayor of Stevens Point and Polish American Michael Wiza. Following Mayor Wiza, the speakers included:

Consul Paulina Szafałowicz, who along with her own greeting, read a letter from Consul General of the Republic of Poland in Chicago, Małgorzata Bąk-Guzik;

Frank Spula, President of the Polish National Alliance and Polish American Congress;

Professor JinMan Jo from the University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point, College of Fine Arts;

David Rydzewski, President of the Polish American Congress – Wisconsin Division and PAC National Director.

Artist, Boleslaw Kochanowski introduced three of his sons Vincent, August, and Valerius who shared in the design, engineering, and creation of the monument, and his wife Anna, who along with amazing cooking of Polish food, manages the office; showing that this was a true family effort. Bolek also recognized and thanked his father, who so influenced his life.

Trish Mrozek led a board that assembled a group of donors from the Stevens Point area, who were the source of the funding for the monument. The donors include members of the Lemke, Ostrowski, Pisarski, Gollon, and Belke Families, and Heritage of Portage County.

A blessing for the monument was given in both English and Polish by Father Janusz Kowalski, of Saint Lawrence Catholic Church in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin.

Members of the press included a video team from Polish TV, and Stevens Point’s own Polish newspaper GWIAZDA POLARNA, and its editor and publisher Jacek Hilgier.

Boleslaw comes from a long line of blacksmiths, starting with his great uncle Hipolit Kochanowski who apprenticed Bolek’s father Boleslaw Kochanowski Sr. in Kotlice, near Zamość, Poland. Boleslaw Sr. passed his exams and became a blacksmith journeyman.

Bolek’s parents miraculously survived World War II, having been rounded up in Poland for forced labor in Nazi Germany. Upon Allied liberation they met and were married in the refugee camp at Gablingen Germany, starting their family there. They finally were allowed to emigrate to America where Bolek and a younger brother were born, joining their German born siblings.

Boleslaw Sr. began work as a lead blacksmith in the shops of the Chicago Transit Authority, later moving to Milwaukee, becoming the boilermaker-blacksmith layout designer at the huge shops of the Milwaukee Road Railway.

As a young man Boleslaw Jr. earned a degree in International Relations from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, but the draw of working with his hands alongside his father, drew Bolek to the Milwaukee Road shops. Kochanowski Sr. had a motto “Look and Learn” which Kochanowski Jr. did, and he put that knowledge to use through the years, in turn passing the expertise to his own sons – the fourth generation.

Striking out on his own to design and build architectural ironwork, Bolek’s talents led to commissioned works for gates, railings, screens, and fine metal artistic pieces. Gradually it evolved to works on a grander scale and now include monuments that adorn commercial and civic centers and parks.

The origins of this monument began with Polish leaders in Stevens Point who thought that there should be another significant piece of public art with a Polish theme, and Kochanowski was asked to submit designs for it. The setting would be a “Cultural Commons” area within a public park on the banks of the Wisconsin River. Areas within the “Cultural Commons” would show a connection with Stevens Point Sister Cities. One of which is Gulcz, Poland, which reflects an area where many early Polish settlers came from to Central Wisconsin

As the ceremony for the dedication was coming to a close, many in the audience were smiling, very proud of this monument and its symbolism of “This Glorious Fraternity of the Polish and American Brotherhood” and their own “Polishness”. A few even had a tear in their eye.

PAC Wisconsin Division at the
2021 PCW Picnic and Fair
in Polish Center of Wisconsin

What a delightful weekend it was! After Polish Fest on the SuperFest grounds was canceled in June of 2020 and 2021, the Polish Center of Wisconsin (PCW) in Franklin decided to host a similar in spirit event on its grounds. Thanks to this splendid idea, several thousands of Polish Americans and their friends could entertain many of the attractions offered at the Polish Fest.

Polish food was served in the picnic area located in front of the building, but it could be enjoyed on the beatiful patio overseeing the Koepmier Lake. Vendors and folk artists displayed their wares in the main hall and the Veterans Room. There was also a chance to shake a leg in the Grand Ballroom (music by Larry Lynne Band, Noyz Boyz & Gyrlz and Polka Fusion) and relish performances of Syrena Dancers. To the enjoyment of many, Syrena shows ended with group members graciously inviting the audience members to dance with them kujawiak and polonez.

Our organization joined the festivities by hosting a booth in the Veterans Room, right across from the fellow organization Polanki offering as usual a fantastic choice of Polish jewelry and Boleslawiec pottery. The main attraction on our table was the DO YOU KNOW POLAND? booklet* and some took on the challenge on identifying all images on its cover – which was the target of recent recent DYKP competition.

For the successful presence of our organization at this event, hearfelt thanks go to the public-spirited volunteers working at our booth: Angela Pienkos, Anne Gournack, Clare Anne Gaouette, Derek Zarzeczny, Donald Pienkos, Hank Kulesza, Judith Free and Krystyna Zuzanski.

*Thanks to the funds obtained from the Polish Consulate in Chicago,
our copies of the booklet were printed in Magenta Priniting owned by a member of PAC-Wisconsin).

Września Children Strikes
Fighting for the Right to Speak Polish

Irena Frączek 

After centuries of quiet obscurity, a little town of Września in west-central Poland, suddenly started making headlines across the world. The year was 1901, a cause célèbre was a group of brave Polish children rebelling against the ban on using Polish language in Prussian schools – ultimately throwing an unforgiving spotlight on the abhorrent and ruthless nature of germanization policies in the Prussian partition of Poland.

Września is located in Greater Poland (Wielkopolska), about 30 miles south-east of Poznań, and 15 miles south of Gniezno, two historically Polish cities vying for the title of the first capital of Poland. The Gniezno and Poznań region fell under the Prussian rule in 1793, in the course of second partition of Poland (ending also the short life of May 3 Constitution enacted in 1791).

From Prussian perspective, Polish inhabitants of the annexed area stood in the way of German eastward expansion (Drang nach Osten), a medieval idea that German nationalists eagerly embraced in the 19th century Prussian Kingdom. The main strategies for doing away with the obstacles on their course was eradication of Polish land ownership and unrelenting suppression of Polish culture and religion (Kulturkampf).

Step by step, Poles and Polish language were being removed from administration, courts, cultural institutions and academia. In secondary and elementary schools, restrictions on teaching in Polish were gradually introduced in the increasing groups of subjects and by 1873, only religion could be taught in Polish. Then in March 1901, a mandatory switch to German was ordered.

In Września’s Catholic People’s School (Katolicka Szkoła Ludowa), implementation of the new rule began with the arrival of re-printed catechisms on April 1. Yet children declined to accept the books and refused to speak German in religion classes. Children were disciplined by spending time in isolation rooms but facing an implacable defiance, unscrupulous German teachers turned to caning. On May 15, a town meeting with prominent politicians was held and a solemn note of disapproval was sent to the authorities. Then the situation escalated to the explosive level just five days later.

On May 20, the teachers subjected 14 students to prolonged beating. Hearing the screams of children flogged inside, desperate parents and other concerned citizens tried to enter the school to stop the brutality. The school called police to disperse the crowd and in the aftermath, 26 adults were put on trial for public disturbance, rebellion, interference with public duties and criminal offences against the state. The so-called “Gniezno trial” ended on November 19, 1901 with sentences of imprisonment for 20 defendants ranging from 2 months to 2.5 years. The harshest penalty went to the impoverished woman taking care of her 7 children and elderly mother.

Despite the inconceivable hardship for the defendant’s families, the Leipzig tribunal upheld the ruling on April 12, 1902. The most defiant children were forced to stay in school for one year longer than required by law. The authorities also went after the committees organizing aid to the affected families. New court cases were filed against a school physician who certified the seriousness of children injuries and other witnesses testifying earlier for the defense. Even the local photographer Szymon Furmanek was sentenced to 40 days in jail for taking just three pictures of people involved in the drama. Two other people were slapped with lesser sentences for storing and distributing the photos.

Despite the trials, continuing use of corporal punishment and other repressions, children strikes spread to larger areas. They started waning after amnesty was declared in 1903, yet the last holdouts held tight until the summer of 1904. A new wave of strikes in 1905 engulfed about 800 schools in Poznań and Bydgoszcz regions. The last surge of strikes took place in years 1906-1907 with participation reaching 75,000 students. But it was the spark of Września, where 159 children rebelled at the peak of activities, that left the deepest trace in the history of those events.

WISCONSIN WRZEŚNIA
connection

Tekla Dembiński (née Tomaszewska), one of the children striking in Września, came to Wisconsin in 1909.

She was born into a very patriotic Września family on September 12, 1888. Under the care of her father, Andrzej Tomaszewski, secret meetings took place in their home for her siblings and friends to learn Polish language and history. When Tekla began coming home late because she was detained in “school arrest” after classes and her hands started showing signs of beeting to the blood, her father joined other parents writing complaints to the authorities. Around Easter 1902, despite the death of her mother, she was ordered to stay in school for one extra year. By the fall 1902, she was one of the only two students still subjected to this punishment (another was Bronisława Śmidowicz, generally viewed as the strike leader).

Tekla came to the United States to join two of her older siblings*. On August 7, 1912 she married Tomasz Dembiński and focused her life on raising the family of 4 children. Following her death in Racine on January 17, 1978, she was buried in Saint Adalbert Cemetery w Milwaukee.

On January 14, 2021, a delegation of Polish government officials and Polonia activists placed flowers on Tekla’s grave to mark the 120 anniversary of Września strike (see David Rydzewski’s report from the event). But more needs to be done to preserve the memory of those historic events. For the immediate consideration, the inscription on Tekla’s gravestone has worn away and her resting place distinguishes itself as the only unmarked and decrepit grave in this section of the cemetery.

*Two of Tekla’s brothers made big contributions to the history of Poland and American Polonia. Franciszek Ksawery Tomaszewski (1881-1976) was a Polish journalist working in Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit. Active in many Polish organizations, he was awarded the General Haller Swords Medal for recruiting volunteer soldiers to Haller’s Blue Army. Aleksander Tomaszewski (1891-1970) studied medicine in Berlin University but spend his life in military. Among numerous decorations, he received a Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari (1922) for fighting in the Soviet-Polish war and British Defense Medal and War Medal 1939-1945.

The Września children strikes quickly gained widespread attention in partitioned Poland and across the world. Support for the children, parents and their defenders was overwhelming. This was true even for the heavily censored newspapers in Russian partition, where Poles were subjected to similarly relentless russification.

As it could be expected, German newspapers followed two different paths. In general, Social Democrats opposed the germanization policies on Polish lands, while nationalists defended them staunchly. The latter slant went on display in late 1901, when celebrated pianist Ignacy Jan Paderewski was booed and boycotted after declaring that proceeds from his concert in Germany will go to aid the Września victims. Needless to say, Paderewski refused to perform in Germany.

In Europe, the strongest reactions were linked to other great Poles. Soon after the Gniezno verdict, Henryk Sienkewicz (1846-1916), the word-famous grandmaster of Polish language and 1905 Nobel prize winner, condemned its flagrant injustice in an open letter to the German emperor. The letter was reprinted in British press along the articles brimming with contempt for the Prussian anti-Polish policies.

On the other hand, Maria Konopnicka (1842-1910), the greatest Polish female poet and writer of the time, and a soul acutely sensitive to the suffering of children, worked tirelessly to publicize Września events during her prolonged stays in Italy. In response, about 120,000 Italians signed petition condemning the atrocities perpetrated on Polish children by Prussian teachers. Konopnicka also wrote the vastly popular poem “About Września” and the memory of those events echoes in Konopnicka’s “Rota.” Viewed by some as a candidate for Polish anthem, it is one of the most important songs ever written in Poland.

American Polonia quickly became aware of Września events as well. Published alongside the emotionally charged appeal “to Polish mothers” penned by Henryk Sienkiewicz, the first reports in Polish-language press appeared in June 1901. The response of Polish-Americans was spectacular. Numerous organizations called their members to action. Almost immediately petitions started to circulate and organized protests began taking place in town halls and parishes of many major and smaller American cities. They peaked in January 1902 and according to some estimates, demonstrations in Chicago area gathered around 25,000 Poles and their supporters on just one day (January 26) alone.

These actions helped the Polish cause in more ways than one. Thousands of dollars collected to aid the children and their imprisoned defenders notwithstanding, the extent of oppression that Poles suffered in the partitioned Poland was most vividly brought to the attention of general public and the media. For individual Polish Americans, it was a chance to realize the strength of their spiritual connection to the ancestral homeland and native language. And for Polonia in general, an opportunity to experience the empowerment that arises from the organizational unity and the potency of symbols that conjure sympathy and support for Polish causes, while exposingy the true image of ruthless perpetrators.

Let’s pause and reflect on the significance of those historic events on their 120 anniversary.