The matter of culture, which is Danuta Maślicka’s domain, is also quite complicated. We were able to see and hear for ourselves what bad things happened before, during and after screenings of the famous "Jurassic Park", attended, after all, by our children "sent" from schools.
In response to one of the article’s questions, it must be stated that, most likely in the era of videocassettes, "telsats" and "cable TV", whole-school trips to the cinema to see even the most attractive film have outlived their usefulness. They bring more educational harm than cognitive, aesthetic or intellectual benefit. (I would be glad if I were mistaken.)
Looking more deeply into the issue, it is probably worth considering the controversial and, in some places, exaggerated views of Jerzy Turowicz—views that, precisely for that reason, compel reflection: "It is difficult to speak here at greater length about the destruction wrought by the system of real socialism in the fields of culture and science. Admittedly, considerable sums were allocated to culture, but creators who were obedient and compliant, accepting the official ideology and political line, were favoured, while independent ones were marginalised (...) The authorities not only suppressed all independent thought or art through censorship, but also established ‘blacklists’ of writers, journalists and artists who were not allowed to be published or to appear in public. Real socialism, however, wrought its greatest devastation in people—in their mentality and attitudes. ‘Homo sovieticus’, about whom Professor Tischner writes, is by no means a communist. Society resisted communist ideology quite bravely. ‘Homo sovieticus’ is an enslaved, disenfranchised person, deprived of the spirit of initiative, unable to think critically (...) ‘Homo sovieticus’ today is a person who expects and demands everything from the state, who neither wants nor knows how to take their fate into their own hands. And at the root of all this is the fact that the entire period of the PRL, of People’s Poland, was a time of great lies. The press, radio and television lied; the school lied; political leaders lied in the Sejm and at rallies (...) Alongside the negatives, there were also positives and achievements. This system and this government raised Poland from the ruins of war (though perhaps without socialism it would have been done faster and better)... (...) Despite ideological pressure, outstanding works of art and culture were created, although this was thanks to their creators, not the system" ("Tygodnik Powszechny", issue 45/93).
And it was in such a "landscape after the battle" that Danuta Maślicka, professionally involved in "culture", had to work. It is simply impossible to forget what happened—it is already part of us.
Under the auspices of the Association of Creative Teachers, the competition "We Advise the Councillors of Our City" was announced. Elections to local governments are coming soon. I think it is worth returning once more to Jerzy Turowicz’s reflections: "...we have no doubt that people such as Aleksander Kwaśniewski and Józef Oleksy are indeed social democrats and presumably were never communists (...) Today, people whose social-democratic convictions may legitimately be doubted appear from behind the backs of genuine social democrats—both in the party leadership and, especially, in the field... where ‘Comrade Szmaciak’ is raising his head... There is no certainty that the social-democratic leadership of the SLD will be able to prevent the ‘old’ from returning in the field, which could have very dangerous consequences for Poland."
And we happened to work in education and culture precisely in the field.