“Hosting refugees in Poland is a testament to our blood. And this continues the tradition of our fathers and great-grandfathers from the Second World War. This is how we learned it,” said Prof. in an interview with wPolityce.pl. Jan Żaryn, historian.
wPolityce.pl: Even if the entire Ulma family was included among the blessed, comments about the Poles allegedly killing Jews were not silenced. Do the Poles accept this story?
Poles will not accept stories that are so deeply rooted in lies. We are more resistant now. If only because of historical issues regarding Polish-Jewish relations. Knowledge of the Polish nation is increasing. Yesterday’s beatification ceremony in Markowa, where the Ulma family was elevated to the altars, is an extremely valuable educational lesson. Among Poles, this information about the beatification is a very important source of knowledge. Although this knowledge will be subject to various relativizations, such as the fact that the Ulma family was an exception and everyone in the area murdered Jews, it is nevertheless more resistant and we know that this heroic phenomenon in Poland had an institutional character.
Although the Polish state did not even exist under the German occupation…
However, we had an underground state, a Polish government in exile, diplomacy and ministries responsible for informing the world about what was happening in Poland. We had financial structures in place to support the government’s delegation to the country and to send money to the Council for Aid to Jews. This knowledge is also extensive. This individual help is also already in our consciousness. We have also included several dozen places on the map of Warsaw with information about how and where we helped. The reconstruction of history, both at local and central levels, is at such a good level that we cannot be broken as easily as in the time when we were bombarded by the book ‘Neighbors’ by Jan Tomasz Gross or other statements by Prof. Jan Grabowski.
And what is global knowledge? Statements about “Polish death camps” continue to appear in the American and European press. Now we could also read in “The Guardian” a review of the film “The Green Border” by Agnieszka Holland, which won in Venice, where a reference was suggested to the defamatory nature of Poland. Will the world believe?
I have not seen the film, but I know the statements of Mrs. Agnieszka Holland. “The Guardian” showed what the West noticed and considered the revealed truth, presented at the Venice festival. The film received a special award, so that the film’s message will reach the general public through the media. It is not the first and not the last time that we will encounter a certain liberal-left opinion-forming circle being able to use lies. And he links it to current political and ideological reasons. It seems very clear that these lies about our Polish characteristics are intended to lead the recipient to the conclusion that we were able to collaborate with the Germans by betraying Jews. And today, future generations will have it in their blood to educate those who need help. This is of course a message that will be present in the public space.
How to explain this?
It is difficult to argue with lies and their carriers. They have no communication space. However, you should always do your own thing. We certainly have the internal capacity to show, also in the form of reporting, how we should behave in response to the war that Russia has declared on Ukraine. Accepting refugees in Poland is a testament to our blood. And this continues the tradition of our fathers and great-grandfathers from the Second World War. That’s how we were taught.
Should the crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border be told differently?
In the case of the Polish-Belarusian border, we were the first to decide to defend ourselves and our Polish culture on such a large scale and in such a decisive manner, because Hungary built a wall on a smaller section. De facto we also defend European culture. We have shown how the European continent is treated as a continent whose moral standards must be accepted or at least tolerated. The Muslim community, in its dominant form, was not interested in accepting Europe with the benefit of settling here. If we want to survive as Europe, a limit must be drawn. If this continent wants to survive the storm. If we want to win this culture war. This awakening is already visible in the West: in France, in Greece, in southern Italy, in Spain. Wherever this Muslim world has crossed the line of cultural stability, there has been natural public opposition. We have given a clear answer about what to do. In Spain people also cut the wires and reach the continent. I think it is much less human if you do not set a hard limit. We clearly said stop. These people themselves decided that they would be a tool in the hands of enemy countries, that is, Russia and Belarus.
READ MORE:
Beatification in Markowa. President of the Institute of National Remembrance: The tribute to the Ulma family is a tribute to the victory of good over evil and to humanity
The world media write about the beatification of the Ulma family. ‘The Germans only punished people with death for hiding Jews in Poland’
Wieliński from “GW” was happy with the award for the film Holland. An interesting answer came! “He who has power (in culture) – rewards”
Special Jury Prize in Venice for the Netherlands. Director’s agitation: “People are hiding in the forest, deprived of dignity and human rights”
Interviewed by Edyta Hołdyńska
Source: wPolityce