Pulaski Parade Charms Manhattan

October 4, 2016 / Midtown Manhattan / Manhattan Parades / Manhattan Buzz.

I attended the Pulaksi Day Parade on Sunday. The Pulaski Day Parade celebrates Polish heritage in America, highlighting one of the early Polish contributors to America's democracy, General Pulaski who fought in the American Revolutionary War.

It was a beautiful clear day with temperatures around 70 degrees and the sun was shining. All along Fifth Avenue people had lined the streets, awaiting the parade floats, bands and marchers. In front of St. Patrick's Cathedral stood two members of the clergy with whom I had a chance to speak.

 CLICK here to read the rest of our report on the Pulaski Parade in Manhattan NYC.  The report includes some of the history of the role Polish people played in securing our freedom.

The Pulaski Parade, Kociuszko Bridge & Polish Parade in NYC

Two Great Polish Generals in American Revolutionary War & One Great Polish Parade in NYC

October 22, 2018 / Midtown Manhattan NYC / Manhattan Parades NYC / Manhattan Buzz NYC.

On Sunday, October 7, 2018 the Pulaski Parade marched again up 5th Avenue from 36th to 56th Street. The parade began in 1936, some 82 years ago, to honor the contributions of General Casimir [also Kazimierz] Pulaski to the American Revolutionary War effort. The date for the Pulaski Memorial Day Parade is on the anniversary of his death, two days following the failed siege of Savannah, Georgia in 1779.

Polish Independence Centennial 1918 - 2018

The theme this year celebrated the 100th anniversary of Polish independence, which came about following the end of World War I on November 11th, 1918. That day was once called Armistice Day, when the fighting of WWI ceased, but today it is better known as Veterans Day. In the 123 years prior to the end of WWI, Poland – the home of the Polish people, had been partitioned by Russia, Prussia [which is modern day Germany] and Austria.

Polish Serfs, Jews & Burghers Struggled under Czars

The exploitative Czars of Russia - who lived in luxury while the Polish and Russian serfs lived lives in poverty – were deposed in the Russian Revolutions of 1917, which erupted during WWI. The end of the tsars and WWI resulted in Polish freedom, just as 123 years earlier the Czar Catherine the Great’s diplomatic and war victories from 1792 – 1796, led to the partitioning and subjugating of Poland by its three neighbors.

These days, in both Poland and Russia, things seem to be going backwards. Democratic liberties, rights and rule of law seem imperiled, which is why parades, statues and other reminders of the past can help us stay vigilant to the tricks of those who would undermine the rule of law and democracy in order to take everything for themselves.

The Pulaski Parade - Polish Culture on the 5th Avenue Stage

The Pulaski Parade in NYC features Polish dancers, musicians, schools and organizations, the armed services and government officials, so one might say it’s as much a parade about Polish culture in America, as it is about General Pulaski. General Pulaski served with the American Continental Army beginning in 1777 until he died at the Battle of Savannah on October 11, 1779.

As a student of history, I was heartened to see a strong showing for another great Polish general who served our nation during the American Revolutionary War – General Tadeusz Kociuszko. There’s a bridge connecting Brooklyn and Queens that continues to bear his name and he is one of the less sung heroes of the American Revolution, perhaps because he was also something of an Abolitionist.

Tadeusz Kociuszko - Polish American Revolutionary War General

There’s a 2015 program entitled Tadeusz Kociuszko Polish Hero, created by Peasant Prince Productions, LLC which covered the life of Kociuszko. In it they tell us that American Founding Father, President Thomas Jefferson was named the executor of Kociuszko’s Will. They go on to note that in 1817 Kociuszko’s dying wishes were that his wealth would be used to free, educate and empower as many slaves as the wealth Kociuszko left behind would enable. But they found no evidence of Jefferson ever executing the Will and disputes regarding it went on into the 1860’s.

This historical footnote may help explain why Kociuszko was sidelined in the historical accounts of the times. It’s well documented that Kociuszko was one of the few well trained military leaders in the Continental Army of the colonists in 1776, when American demanded their independence from the most powerful nation on the planet. And it was Kociuszko’s use of science and engineering skills that enabled the American Revolutionaries to continually thwart their better equipped, better trained, far more powerful enemies - the British monarchy – and ultimately prevail.

Kociuszko Scientific Military Tactics were a Key to Victory

When Kociuszko started with the colonists he was instrumental in helping them prevent the British from controlling the Hudson River. Kociuszko’s military training motivated him to identify and secure the West Point, which is still in use today as a military training academy [established by Jefferson in 1802]. The Hudson was believed to be the most important American waterway at the time, and having control of it would have enabled the British to split the New England states from the rest of the colonies – essentially dividing the nation [at the time] in half.

Kociuszko’s advice was previously ignored by his superiors at Fort Ticonderoga, when he warned the general to secure a difficult to secure high point overlooking the fort. Because that point was not secured, the British handily beat the Americans. Kociuszko helped the Americans escape, building rafts and erecting obstacles along the way to slow the British.

In 1777, Kociuszko advised the Americans to secure the surrounding hills, which they did this time upon General George Washington’s insistence. The British lost that battle and it was believed to be instrumental in enabling America to secure French support, as the French now believed an American victory was possible.

Kociuszko outlined similar fortifications for West Point, to which Benedict Donald was given command in July 1780. In September of 1780 Benedict Donald, subsequently tried to sell Kociuszko’s defense plans to the British, but the British agent was captured and the plan exposed. The British agent was hanged and Benedict Donald escaped and became a British officer. It is said that he slaughtered a surrendered group of colonists before the war ended. King George is said to have liked him [Benedict Donald]. Today, there still stands a statue at West Point of Tadeusz Kociuszko.

Kociuszko also Fought for Serfs, Jews, Burghers & African Americans

Jefferson reportedly wrote that Kociuszko was one of the purest idealists he’d ever met. In fact Kociuszko not only fought for the American colonists, but also for the serfs, Jews and burghers of Poland. And he was color blind in America, having befriended and worked with a number of African Americans [as well as what he did in his last Will & Testment].

So it was nice to see that there were groups in the Pulaski Memorial Day Parade also carrying the torch for General Kociuszko, another Polish general who also fought for equality, liberty & justice for all – in the Pulaski Day Parade in NYC.

Both of these generals are still missed and they remind us of how new the existence of real democracy is, how hard democracy is to win, and as history has shown us – how easy independence is to lose – if one is not vigilant to the aggressive, deceptive efforts of those who already have so much, to take even more from the rest of us.

Dziękuję bardzo za przeczytanie tego. Thank you for taking the time to read this.