1980 Solidarity
(Link to Audio: Listen to Solidarity 6.6.4)
In 1968, students and workers joined forces in an effort that eventually gave birth to Solidarity as both a movement and a union. Government mismanagement and economic difficulties spanning more than a decade sparked strikes across Poland. A strike at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk in August 1980 set in motion the movement that eventually led to the fall of communism in Poland. The government reached an agreement with the ship workers known as the Gdańsk agreement that allowed workers to form a union. This led to the first independent labor union in a Soviet bloc country, Solidarity, led by a factory worker, Lech Wałęsa.
The Soviet Union was alarmed by these developments and demanded action from Polish communist authorities. As a result, General Wojciech Jaruzelski assumed power and began a strong-armed policy. Martial law was imposed; Solidarity leaders and thousands of its supporters were arrested. By the end of 1981, the strikes had ceased, and Solidarity was crippled. In October 1982, Solidarity was delegitimized and banned.
Throughout the mid-1980s, Solidarity enjoyed extensive international support as an underground movement. One of its most fervent supporters was Pope John Paul II.
Martial law was lifted July 22, 1983, and many imprisoned Solidarity leaders were released and granted amnesty.
In October of that year, Wałęsa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, but communist authorities would not allow him to travel to Sweden to receive the honor.
