Part III: People
Welcome back. If you haven't read the previous parts of my 3-part series, please do. Today I will finish my series on Post-Communist mentality in Poland by talking about the people.
Following Poland's release from Communism, densely populated areas tended to be more liberal and stray away from the past. Rural areas on the other hand, very much stuck to the old ways of life during Communism. Rural areas over the years have strayed away from Communist thought but the presence is still there.
When talking to my grandparents, we got onto the subject of the bloc they live in. They talked about how the bloc needed to turn off the water for maintenance but one lady was upset at this. They thought that the lady must work with the bloc to be a part of it. This reflected how the older people of Poland still have a collective mentality, compared to the younger, post-Communist generation.
With the older people came also less materialistic lifestyles. A majority of those that lived during Communism still live how they did. This means they still live in the same building with a lot of the same appliances they had for over 20 years. This may be attributed to how long Communist-made products lasted or how the Communist mentality wasn't one of consuming.
The same can't be said for the generation after Communism. Younger people are looking to sway away from the bloc their parents grew in and many are pursuing opportunities outside of Poland. A lot of them also strive to imitate American consumerist culture by trying to obtain the newest electronics or cars.
That being said, something that a lot of Poles share in common is Alcohol consumption. From my experience, everyone drinks in Poland. The elderly, mid-age, and even young drink. Often times when I near the center of my parents' town I see underage people consuming alcohol and quite often even smoking. I cannot attest for all of Poland, but it seems to me that alcohol consumption in Poland is quite rampant. The Polish mentality on alcohol consumption has always been laxer when compared to the rest of the world.
Even though the younger people tend to be more liberal, Poland overall seems very conservative. As I've said before, faith plays a significant role in the life and government of Poland. Measures for abortion and other topics have been put in placed due to the Catholic faith. The PiS, conservative, party recently won the majority in parliament, with the main supporters being in the rural areas of Poland. Outside of formal Politics are many local and nation-wide organizations which range from opposing the refugee quota instituted by the EU to paramilitary organizations preparing for situations which may call for their assistance. As of right now, Poland's future seems conservative but this may change when the younger population matures.
National Radical Camp
A reason for Poland's overall anti-immigration mentality is the homogenous nature of Poland's population. I've read that more than 98% of Poland is European, with 97.7% being ethnically Polish.
The desire to maintain this homogeneity may derive from the result of accepting migrants in countries such as England and Germany, where many terrorist attacks and general problems have derived from foreign-born migrants. Accepting migrants into Poland would not only increase the possibility of such attacks but would strain the economy which isn't that strong.
Each dot represents a terrorist attack, notice how Poland hasn't had any?
While Poland's economy isn't as strong as it's Western neighbors', it is the fastest growing out of the previous satellite states of the USSR. The Polish people are also quite a hard working and educated people, with employment, literacy, and education being overall statistically higher compared globally.
With all this in mind, I see Poland in the process of stepping out of its communist past and into times of prosperity. The Polish people have and will continue to persevere I believe. I hope you enjoyed reading my series, and if you did please do resteem and follow me to read similar content. I intend to write in a few days about my trips to Auschwitz and Krakow!ch