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The end of the scouts
Jacek Kuroń Social activist
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Just one last word about the scouts so that I can close the lid on this. The scouts stayed and were regenerating and would have regenerated if society had regenerated, too. But it was disbanded just as all the other independent institutions were disbanded, and I took no part in this disbanding, quite the opposite, I tried to fight against it as best as I could. But my past activities and my attempts to destroy the scouts were used against me. I was expelled from the scouts, and I was expelled at a moment when we had already... because quite a significant number of people had gathered in the headquarters and, for various reasons, they had each tried to rebuild the scouts as an opposition movement. Of course, that just wasn't possible and so everything had to end the way it did. At the same time, the Walterowcy were disbanded which was also the proper decision from the authorities' point of view because we were a destructive force that was knocking down the totalitarian structures and making an ever greater impact. Some time before this, a group of our youngsters went with Adam Michnik to the Contradiction Seekers Club. A while later, a large group set up a debating society at university.

Jeszcze słowo o harcerstwie żeby postawić kropkę nad "i". Harcerstwo zostało, odradzało się i odrodziłoby się, gdyby odrodziło jeszcze społeczeństwo. Zostało rozbite, tak jak zostały rozbite wszystkie inne, samodzielne instytucje i ja w tym rozbijaniu nie brałem udziału, a przeciwnie – starałem się walczyć przeciw temu jak umiałem. Natomiast w pewnym momencie wykorzystano pewne moje działania do glajsztachtacji i do rozbijania harcerstwa. Wyleciałem, jak mówię, z harcerstwa. Wyleciałem w momencie, w którym myśmy już... bo tam się taka, w tej głównej kwaterze zebrała dość liczna ekipa ludzi, którzy z różnych powodów starali się to harcerstwo budować jako organizację opozycyjną. To było oczywiście niemożliwe i musiało się tak skończyć jak się skończyło. Rozwiązano przy okazji Walterowców, też jakby z państwowego punktu widzenia słusznie, no bo myśmy byli siłą rozbijającą te glajszlachtowane struktury totalitaryzmu i rozbijalibyśmy ją coraz mocniej. Jeszcze trochę wcześniej część młodzieży, właśnie młodszych, poszła z Adasiem Michnikiem do Klubu Poszukiwaczy Sprzeczności. A trochę potem liczna grupa założyła klub dyskusyjny na Uniwersytecie.

The late Polish activist, Jacek Kuroń (1934-2004), had an influential but turbulent political career, helping transform the political landscape of Poland. He was expelled from the communist party, arrested and incarcerated. He was also instrumental in setting up the Workers' Defence Committee (KOR) and later became a Minister of Labour and Social Policy.

Listeners: Marcel Łoziński Jacek Petrycki

Film director Marcel Łoziński was born in Paris in 1940. He graduated from the Film Directing Department of the National School of Film, Television and Theatre in Łódź in 1971. In 1994, he was nominated for an American Academy Award and a European Film Academy Award for the documentary, 89 mm from Europe. Since 1995, he has been a member of the American Academy of Motion Picture Art and Science awarding Oscars. He lectured at the FEMIS film school and the School of Polish Culture of Warsaw University. He ran documentary film workshops in Marseilles. Marcel Łoziński currently lectures at Andrzej Wajda’s Master School for Film Directors. He also runs the Dragon Forum, a European documentary film workshop.

Cinematographer Jacek Petrycki was born in Poznań, Poland in 1948. He has worked extensively in Poland and throughout the world. His credits include, for Agniezka Holland, Provincial Actors (1979), Europe, Europe (1990), Shot in the Heart (2001) and Julie Walking Home (2002), for Krysztof Kieslowski numerous short films including Camera Buff (1980) and No End (1985). Other credits include Journey to the Sun (1998), directed by Jesim Ustaoglu, which won the Golden Camera 300 award at the International Film Camera Festival, Shooters (2000) and The Valley (1999), both directed by Dan Reed, Unforgiving (1993) and Betrayed (1995) by Clive Gordon both of which won the BAFTA for best factual photography. Jacek Petrycki is also a teacher and a filmmaker.

Tags: Walterowcy, The Contradiction Seekers Club, Adam Michnik

Duration: 1 minute, 25 seconds

Date story recorded: 1987

Date story went live: 12 June 2008