Polsce i Polakom : idea Kongresu Polonii Kanadyjskiej

Abstract

The Congress of Canadians of Polish Origin was founded in 1944 and accepted the following three goals of their activity: 1. integration of Poles in Canada aimed at cultivating the national culture; 2. fight for Poland’s sovereignty after World War 2; 3. actions for the good and unity of Canada as a foster mother country. These tasks were realized from the very moment of establishing the Congress, although the priorities changed. In the first period (1944–1989) there dominated a political current, whose delineating element was the concern about Poland’s regaining sovereignty. The year 1989 saw a very clear modification of the goals pursued by the Congress: the politics-oriented direction was slowly disappearing to make room for the cultural-educational current, where the priority was integration of Canadian of Polish origin on the ground of the common culture. This was accompanied by the awareness of the concern about the vital place which Poland was entitled to occupy in the multicultural Canadian society. Through-out the whole period of its activity the Congress showed a great concern over the prosperity and good of Canada, at the same time taking care of proper relations with the Canadian authorities and representatives of ethnic groups inhabiting the territory of Canada.