I’m going to take the opportunity to remind everyone that even though most people who attend the Independence Day celebrations are normal folks with more patriotism than most, there is absolutely a far-right contingent that attend this event, and the event is also ran by far-right members. Whether it’s apartments being firebombed because of women’s strike and LGBT stickers being displayed (and of course they didn’t even hit that apartment), retail stores being ransacked (look up “Empik Independence March), and of course the usual suspects of open racism and/or fascism:
-Some participants marched under the slogan “We Want God!”, words from an old Polish religious song that the US president, Donald Trump, quoted during a visit to Warsaw earlier this year. Speakers encouraged attendants to stand against liberals and defending Christian values. [2017]
Demonstrators with faces covered chanted “Pure Poland, white Poland!” and “Refugees get out!” [2017]
Many carried the national white-and-red flag while others held banners depicting a falanga, a far-right symbol dating to the 1930s. A demonstrator interviewed by state television TVP said he was on the march to “remove Jewry from power”. [2017]
the crowd included burly young men who raised their arms in fascist-like salutes to chants of “Hail, Great Poland” and another group shouting “Border guards, open fire,” [2021]
Mr. Bakiewicz, in his speech, railed against what he called “internal collaborators,” declaring that “there is a war going on, not only the one on the border, but also the war with Germany and the European Union.” He denounced plans to cut carbon emissions as “green devilry” cooked up by ecologists and Germans to keep down Poland, a major coal producer. [2021]
One protester set fire to a picture of Donald Tusk, a former prime minister and top E.U. executive who is now Poland’s main opposition leader, and others paraded a banner showing St. George thrusting a sword through a dragon draped in the blue E.U. flag. [2021]
In one section, supporters of Grzegorz Braun, a far-right MP, held signs saying “Stop the Ukrainisation of Poland”, referring to this year’s mass arrival of Ukrainian refugees. [2022]
Meanwhile, All-Polish Youth (Młodzież Wszechpolska), a nationalist group that is one of the organisers of the march, set up a stand where people could wipe their feet on the EU flag and an LGBT rainbow flag. Two of the group’s female activists also burned a flag featuring the logo of Women’s Strike (Strajk Kobiet), a feminist group that has led protests against Poland’s near total abortion ban. [2022]
In a radical-nationalist sections of the march, symbols such as the Black Sun and Celtic cross – which are used globally by neo-fascists and white nationalists – were visible, as in previous years. One banner said, in English, “White Lives Matter”. [2022]
Among those marching near the front was Zbigniew Ziobro, the justice minister and leader of United Poland (Solidarna Polska), a hard-right junior partner in Poland’s ruling coalition. Alongside him was Antoni Macierewicz, a deputy leader of the main ruling PiS party.
Ziobro said that it was vital for Poles to continue defending their sovereignty, especially “at a time when Russia is rebuilding its empire by force [and] when Germany is turning the EU into one country under its leadership”. [2022]
If you want to experience Polish Independence Day without the fascist shit, go basically anywhere else. The Independence March in its present form is a disgrace to this country.
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I’m going to take the opportunity to remind everyone that even though most people who attend the Independence Day celebrations are normal folks with more patriotism than most, there is absolutely a far-right contingent that attend this event, and the event is also ran by far-right members. Whether it’s apartments being firebombed because of women’s strike and LGBT stickers being displayed (and of course they didn’t even hit that apartment), retail stores being ransacked (look up “Empik Independence March), and of course the usual suspects of open racism and/or fascism:
-Some participants marched under the slogan “We Want God!”, words from an old Polish religious song that the US president, Donald Trump, quoted during a visit to Warsaw earlier this year. Speakers encouraged attendants to stand against liberals and defending Christian values. [2017]
Demonstrators with faces covered chanted “Pure Poland, white Poland!” and “Refugees get out!” [2017]
Many carried the national white-and-red flag while others held banners depicting a falanga, a far-right symbol dating to the 1930s. A demonstrator interviewed by state television TVP said he was on the march to “remove Jewry from power”. [2017]
the crowd included burly young men who raised their arms in fascist-like salutes to chants of “Hail, Great Poland” and another group shouting “Border guards, open fire,” [2021]
Mr. Bakiewicz, in his speech, railed against what he called “internal collaborators,” declaring that “there is a war going on, not only the one on the border, but also the war with Germany and the European Union.” He denounced plans to cut carbon emissions as “green devilry” cooked up by ecologists and Germans to keep down Poland, a major coal producer. [2021]
One protester set fire to a picture of Donald Tusk, a former prime minister and top E.U. executive who is now Poland’s main opposition leader, and others paraded a banner showing St. George thrusting a sword through a dragon draped in the blue E.U. flag. [2021]
In one section, supporters of Grzegorz Braun, a far-right MP, held signs saying “Stop the Ukrainisation of Poland”, referring to this year’s mass arrival of Ukrainian refugees. [2022]
Meanwhile, All-Polish Youth (Młodzież Wszechpolska), a nationalist group that is one of the organisers of the march, set up a stand where people could wipe their feet on the EU flag and an LGBT rainbow flag. Two of the group’s female activists also burned a flag featuring the logo of Women’s Strike (Strajk Kobiet), a feminist group that has led protests against Poland’s near total abortion ban. [2022]
In a radical-nationalist sections of the march, symbols such as the Black Sun and Celtic cross – which are used globally by neo-fascists and white nationalists – were visible, as in previous years. One banner said, in English, “White Lives Matter”. [2022]
Among those marching near the front was Zbigniew Ziobro, the justice minister and leader of United Poland (Solidarna Polska), a hard-right junior partner in Poland’s ruling coalition. Alongside him was Antoni Macierewicz, a deputy leader of the main ruling PiS party.
Ziobro said that it was vital for Poles to continue defending their sovereignty, especially “at a time when Russia is rebuilding its empire by force [and] when Germany is turning the EU into one country under its leadership”. [2022]
If you want to experience Polish Independence Day without the fascist shit, go basically anywhere else. The Independence March in its present form is a disgrace to this country.