The images of solidarity

Abstract

The sociological and political situation in Poland since the end of 2015, especially around the Constitutional Court, inspired me to compare two solidarity manifestations which happened at the same place but in very different points of the history of Poland. The first one took place on May 3^rd 1981 and the second one on December 19^th 2015. The place is the Old Market Square in a historical city of Torun situated half way from Warsaw to Gdansk.

The manifestation in 1981 gathered people in solidarity with farmers who wanted to have similar Independent SOLIDARITY Trade Union organization as workers already had. It was the largest independent demonstration in the city during communism time 1945 – 1989.  The moment of the demonstration was unique. Huge strikes covered Poland from Gdansk to Silesia during the summer 1980. They finished on August the 31st by communist’s rulers promise to establish independent trade union SOLIDARITY. Finally, it was registered by the Court in Warsaw on November the 10^th 1980. In fact, SOLIDARITY was not only a trade union, but independence and social, nationwide movement as well. That was why individual farmers wanted to have similar representation as workers already have had.