President Bush's Remarks at the Solidarity Workers Monument
Annotation
President George H. W. Bush visited Poland and Hungary in July 1989 after June elections in which Solidarity candidates won 160 of the 161 seats in the Sejm that were available to them and 92 of the 100 seats of the Polish Senate. In addition, many leaders of the Communist Party failed to secure enough votes to be elected to the parliament they had controlled for four decades. Pursuing a new US policy he referred to as “beyond containment,” Bush wished to show US support for a movement toward the integration of Eastern Europe into the “community of nations” without provoking a backlash among Soviet and Eastern European leaders. After meeting with Polish leader General Wojciech Jaruzelski and addressing the Polish National Assembly, Bush traveled to Gdansk, where he lunched with Solidarity leader Lech Walesa and addressed a crowd of 25,000 outside the factory gates of the Lenin Shipyard, at the site where Solidarity began nine years earlier, in front of a monument erected to commemorate the lives of 45 workers killed by government forces during a 1970 strike over food prices. Impressed with Jaruzelski’s openness to change, Bush paid homage in the speech to the government’s “wisdom and creativity and courage.” He had urged Jaruzelski to run for president, believing that a coalition government would be best suited to withstand the criticisms that stringent economic measures most likely would entail. One week later, Jaruzelski won the election with Solidarity’s support, thereby creating a power-sharing arrangement that in August resulted in a Solidarity-led coalition government that the Soviet Union accepted.
Text
Remarks at the Solidarity Workers Monument in Gdansk
July 11, 1989
The President. Hello, Lech Walesa! Hello, Solidarnosc! Hello, Polska! And
congratulations on what you've done since I last visited: the first free elections in modern
Polska. Poland has a special place in the American heart and in my heart. And when you
hurt, we feel pain. And when you dream, we feel hope. And when you succeed, we feel
joy. It goes far beyond diplomatic relations; it's more like family relations -- and coming
to Poland is like coming home. This special kinship is the kinship of an ancient dream --
a recurring dream -- the dream of freedom. ``They are accustomed to liberty,'' wrote a
Byzantine historian about the Slavic people more than a thousand years ago. And the
spirit of the Poles has been conveyed across the centuries and across the oceans, a dream
that would not die.
That dream was severely tested here in Gdansk. Fifty years ago this summer, the predawn
quiet of this peaceful Baltic harbor was shattered by the thunder from the 15-inch guns of
Nazi warship Schlewswig-Holstein. Within the hour, iron panzers rolled across the Polish
frontier, and Europe was plunged into darkness that would engulf the world. For Poland
the choices were few: surrender to tyranny or resist against impossible odds. And in the
brutal fighting that followed, you set a standard for courage that will never be forgotten.
In World War II, Poland lost everything -- except her honor, except her dreams.
Before Poland fell, you gave the allies ``Enigma,'' the Nazis' secret coding machine.
Breaking the unbreakable Axis codes saved tens of thousands of allied lives, of American
lives; and for this, you have the enduring gratitude of the American people. And
ultimately, ``Enigma'' and freedom fighters played a major role in winning the Second
World War.
But for you, the war's end did not end the darkness. The cold war brought a long and
chilly night of sorrow and hardship -- and the dream was again denied. And yet there
were glimmers of the long-awaited dawn. In the summer of 1980, you occupied the
shipyards where we stand. And a patriotic electrician clambered over these iron gates and
emerged as one of the heroes of our times -- Lech Walesa. And above your streets a
graceful monument rose, in the tradition of our own Statue of Liberty, to become a
symbol recognized around the world as a beacon of hope.
But the hope, like the dawn, proved fleeting. For under cover of darkness, the electrician
was arrested and your movement outlawed. And in the icy cold of a savage winter, a
modern nation was sealed off from the outside world.
But still the dream would not die. In the wintry darkness, candles appeared in silent
protest, lighting the windows of your villages, of your cities. And as the years unfolded
and as the world watched in wonder, you -- the Polish people and your leaders -- turned
despair into hope, turned darkness into dreams.
Hope and hard work were the foundation of Poland's resurrection as a state in 1918.
Against enormous odds, confidence and determination made that dream a reality. And
these same qualities have brought you to this new crossroads in history. Your time has
come. It is Poland's time of possibilities; its time of responsibilities. It is Poland's time of
destiny, a time when dreams can live again -- Solidarity reborn, productive negotiations
between the Government of Poland and the Polish people, and the first fruits of
democracy, elections. At another time, in another city, where the human spirit was being
tested, a great American President spoke eloquently about the struggle for liberty. Today
the world watches the inevitable outcome of that struggle.
Today, to those who think that hopes can be forever suppressed, I say: Let them look at
Poland! To those who think that freedom can be forever denied, I say: Let them look at
Poland! And to those who think that dreams can be forever repressed, I say: Look at
Poland! For here in Poland, the dream is alive.
Yes, today the brave workers of Gdansk stand beside this monument as a beacon of hope,
a symbol of that dream. And the brave workers of Gdansk know Poland is not alone.
America stands with you.
Audience members. President Bush! President Bush! President Bush!
The President. Because Americans are so free to dream, we feel a special kinship with
those who dream of a better future. Here in Poland, the United States supports the
roundtable accords and applauds the wisdom, tenacity, and patience of one of Poland's
great leaders -- Lech Walesa. And again -- --
Audience members. Lech Walesa! Lech Walesa! Lech Walesa!
The President. And we cheer a movement that has touched the imagination of the world.
That movement is Solidarnosc. And we applaud those who have made this progress
possible: the Polish people. We recognize, too, that the Polish Government has shown
wisdom and creativity and courage in proceeding with these historic steps.
Poles and Americans share a commitment to overcome the division of Europe and to
redeem the promise that is the birthright of men and women throughout the world. Poles
and Americans want Europe to be whole and free. A more democratic Poland can be a
more prosperous Poland. The roundtable provisions, as they continue to be carried out,
can liberate the energy of a dynamic people to work together to build a better life.
We understand the legacy of distrust and shattered dreams as Poles of all political
complexions travel together down the path of negotiation and compromise. Your
challenge is to rise above distrust and bring the Polish people together toward a common
purpose.
Speaking before the new Parliament and the Senate -- your freely elected Senate -- I
outlined steps that America is prepared to take to assist Poland as you move forward on
the path of reform. It will not be easy. Sacrifice and economic hardship have already been
the lot of the Polish people. And hard times are not yet at an end. Economic reform
requires hard work and restraint before the benefits are realized. And it requires patience
and determination. But the Polish people are no strangers to hard work and have taught
the world about determination.
So, I say follow your dream of a better life for you and for your children. You can see a
new and prosperous Poland not overnight, not in a year -- but, yes, a new and prosperous
Poland in your lifetime. It has been done by Polish people before. Hopeful immigrants
came to that magical place called America and built a new life for themselves in a single
generation. And it can be done by Polish people again. But this time, it will be done in
Poland.
Just before I left a few days ago, I was asked in my beautiful Oval Office in the White
House by one of your journalists if I would leave Poland and go to America, were I a
young Pole. And I answered that in this time of bright promise, of historic transition, of
unique opportunity, I would want to stay in Poland and be a part of it, help make the
dream come true for all the Polish people. The magic of America -- --
Audience members. President Bush! President Bush! President Bush!
The President. The magic of America is not found in the majesty of her land. And, yes,
our country has been blessed. But Poland, too, is a land of natural beauty -- ample timber
and ore and water and coal, abundant agriculture potential -- and a talented, creative
people that is determined to succeed.
No, the magic of America is in an idea. I described it in my first moments as President of
the United States: ``We know what works: Freedom works. We know what's right:
Freedom is right. We know how to secure a more just and prosperous land for man on
Earth.'' And today you can rediscover a new land -- a land of your dreams, a land of your
own making, a Poland strong and proud.
Poland is where World War II began. And Poland is where, and why, the cold war got
started. And it is here, in Poland, where we can work to end the division of Europe. It is
in your power to help end the division of Europe. I can think of no finer or more capable
people with whom to entrust this mission. And just as a son of Poland has shown the
world the heights of spiritual leadership in the Vatican, so the people of Poland can show
the world what a free people with commitment and energy can accomplish.
A new century is almost upon us. It is alive with possibilities. And in your quest for a
better future for yourselves and for those wonderful children that I saw coming in from
the airport -- in that quest America stands shoulder to shoulder with the Polish people in
solidarity. Americans and Poles both know that nothing can stop an idea whose time has
come. The dream is a Poland reborn, and the dream is alive.
Poland is not lost while Poles still live. I came here to assure you we will help Poland.
Goodbye, God bless you, and God save this wonderful country of Poland!
Note: The President spoke at 2:32 p.m. outside the Lenin Shipyard. In his remarks, he
referred to Solidarity leader Lech Walesa. Earlier, the President participated in a wreathlaying ceremony at the monument.
Credits
George H. W. Bush, "Remarks at the Solidarity Workers Monument in Gdansk," speech, Gdansk, Poland, July 11, 1989, Bush Presidential Library, Documents and Papers, Bush Library (accessed May 14, 2008).