Poland: The Other

Kasimierz is the Jewish district of Krakow. It was established (I think) in the 1300's by King Casimir. He wanted to stimulate economic development of Poland and welcomed the Jews who at that time were migrating out of western Europe (probably because they were unwelcome, but I'm not sure of my Jewish history.) The area was adjacent to Krakow but physically separated by a channel of the Vistula River, which encircles most of Krakow.

Several bridges connected Kasimierz to Krakow which at that time was completely surrounded by the city wall. The district flourished over the next seven centuries. Synagogues built, cemeteries established, markets developed, money made. It is said that King Casimir was known as "King of the Jews" (but I'm sure not by the Jews.)

And then came the holocaust. At the outbreak of WWII, Poland had the largest Jewish population in the world--3.5 million. The holocaust killed 90% of them. Of that total, about 65,000 came from Krakow/Kazimierz itself. Today, there are 130 Jews living in Krakow. And since the fall of Communism in 1989, the Kasimierz district has been the "hot" place to regentrify. Lots of restaurants, clubs, etc. Lots of money pouring in to rehab the buildings, 6 of the 7 synagogues have become museums rather than being active synagogues. And the cemeteries exist to receive the bodies of Jews from elsewhere.

We had a fascinating guided tour of the district with a very knowledgeable guide. We started at one of the cemeteries. Beautifully maintained, quiet, filled with poignant monuments (some in Hebrew, some in Polish, some in German). I found it surprisingly emotionally overwhelming. I don't know why, I just did.

Krakow is in the southern part of Poland--a broader area known as Upper Silesia. It's a geographic area that has been part of various countries/empires over the last few centuries. At times Czech. At other times Austro-Hungarian. At still other times German. Or Russian. And very occasionally, Poland. Some families have lived here through all of that time. Gliwice, the city where we are living and working, was established in the 1300's and has lived through all of that time. There's a beautiful church in the center, built (I think) in the 1500's/1600's. Someone asked "did Poles build it?" and realized it was a difficult question to answer. Who was in power at that time? Were the people living there German? Czech? Austrian? Russian? Polish? Or just people?

Our project is working on renovating a building that was an orphanage. Built in 1905, it was started by the daughter of a wealthy family who felt called to minister to the poorest of the city. It is a beautiful old building--stone, high arched windows, beautiful wood beams, and perhaps 20 rooms arranged around a large open room. At some point, the orphanage closed and the building was abandoned.

Homelessness was not a problem during the communist era. If someone was homeless, the government identified a family whose house was larger than the "allowed" size for a family of their size. The homeless person was then assigned to that house.

But with the fall of communism, homelessness developed. Two shelters were built in Gliwice, but for reasons unknown to me, one of them closed recently. But the homeless didn't close. Two young women formed a foundation to open a new shelter, including providing a full array of services to women and their children to help move them back into society. At some point, it became evident that the former orphanage was available, the foundation took it over, is now partnering with Habitat to complete the conversion. By year's end, it should be open, able to house 20+ women and their children. It is good to be part of this work.

I have never been part of "the other." (Well, except when I was in a class of 17 black women, 2 black men and me intensively discussing Toni Morrison's "Beloved" for a week.) I don't think I'd do well.