Description
Book SynopsisIn 1980, Polish workers astonished the world by demanding and winning an independent union with the right to strike, called Solidarity. It was the beginning of the end of the Soviet empire. Jack M. Bloom's Seeing Through the Eyes of the Polish Revolution explains how this happened, from the imposition to Communism to its end, based on 150 interviews of Solidarity leaders, activists, supporters and opponents. Bloom presents how Solidarity survived the imposition of martial law and how the opposition forced the government to negotiate itself out of power.
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements 1. Patronage and Corruption in Communist Poland PART I: THE EMERGENCE OF OPPOSITION 2. The First Systemic Crisis 3. ‘Living Parallel to the System’: The Solidarity Generation 4. A Line of Blood 5. An Opposition Emerges 6. Independent Organisations and Opposition PART II: THE SOLIDARITY REVOLUTION 7. The Solidarity Explosion 8. Social Solidarity and the Victory of Solidarnosc 9. The Solidarity Revolution 10. The Solidarity Offensive 11. Bydgoszcz: the Turning Point 12. The Party at War with Itself References Index
