Skip to main content
news

Re: Republicanism still an ...

Russ
Google Google
SubjectRe: Republicanism still an offence in England? (wasRe: Queen mother
FromRuss
Date2002-05-21 17:54 (2002-05-21 17:54)
Message-ID<20020521115423.15933.00000339@mb-md.aol.com>
Client
Newsgroupsalt.fan.tolkien
FollowsPradera
FollowupsPradera (2h & 34m) > Russ
In article <acdnl8$2cai$1@pingwin.acn.pl>, "Pradera" <pradera@pradera.prv.pl> writes:

Pradera
You might want to point which one don't ? Note: I can beat any of your arguments. There are no more fundamentalist fundamentalist than Polish Catholics.

That's a bit sad. I don't know how old you are; but I was in Poland when there were still illegal Solidarity demonstrations after Sunday Mass at a certain Warsaw church. Each one was met by baton-wielding ZOMO. I'll never forget one demonstration,not at the regular church, but rather in the Stare Miasto in Warsaw, which was the worst I was at. We heard there was to be a demonstartion after mass at the church (I think St. Anne's) on the small street between the Rynek and Zamkovy Square.

Well, after mass, the crowd came out, the banners unfurled and the chanting began. My friends (2 other American students) and I started to walk back towards Zamkovy Square and the street was lined with plain clothed ORMO agents. When we turned the corner into Zamkovy Square and saw a sea of ZOMO lined up backed by water canon and starting to move forward. Needless to say we turned back and retreated towards the church and the crowd. By that time the ORMO had infiltrated the outer edge of the crowd and things were about to get nasty. We had just made it about 10 feet into the crowd when the ORMO began to drop tear gas and start swinging with weapons - chains and batons. I'm quite tall, so I could see over the crowd and saw the ZOMO turn the corner and start coming down the street firing tear gas into the crowd.

By then panic began to set in and the crowd rushed to get back into the Church. You can imagine the rush and press of the crowd trying to get bak into the two doors leading into the Church. My friends and I - all over 6 feet and athletic - had a tough time of it. I cannot imagine what it was like for the women and old people in the crowd. By the time we made it into the Church, the ZOMO were pressing up from all side streets - I can only assume they were attacking from the Rynek as well. There's a small alley directly opposite the doors from which ZOMO were firing tear gas canisters directly into the Church. I saw young priests pick these hot canisters up with their bare hands and throw them back out of the Church.

At some point the Church doors were closed but we could still hear the screams and fighting outside. There were lots of injured, I saw several compound fractures; the alter was turned into a first aid station. About an hour later, the priests asked for volunteers to be the first to go out of the Church escorted by priests and church workers. My friends and I volunteered.

We left through the rear of the church and found the Church ringed completely by ZOMO wielding batons. As we walked through the gauntled, they were, in unison, beating the batons against the hands. Luckily we were not attacked but were all arrested and my friends and I ended up in jail for a few hours. We said we were simply American students visiting Old Town and accidently caught up in the mess. It worked and we were released but I don't know what happened to the other men who were in that group.

My point is, that the Church was the central focus of the movement that ultimately liberated your country. I don't know how old you are, but I strongly suspect you are too young to have been a part of those time, judging by the statement you made above. I saw nothing but bravery from those priests and parishoners and solidarity activists at those masses and demonstrations. If Solidarity was the left hand, the Church was the right hand.

Russ

Google
Pradera (2h & 34m) > Russ