Bring out your reds from under your beds
Is that 27-year-old bar of Jedyna quasi-chocolate still preserved at the back of your pantry? Or maybe you've still got a few dusty copies of Trybuna Ludu that your dog hasn't yet used to clear his colon? If you do, and you've got a mind to show future generations what the People's Republic of Poland was all about, then you may want to bring your communist collectibles down to Warsaw's future Museum of Communism, currently being constructed beneath the Palace of Culture (originally Stalin's 'gift' to the people of Poland).
The museum is scheduled to open by year's end, and organizers have been busy beefing up their collection with the odds and ends of Varsovians eager to show younger Poles what life was like during Poland's nearly 50 years behind the Iron Curtain.
"I've brought a batch of letters from the martial law period, including those to and from my daughter living in France. They give many insights into what was an important chapter of communism in Poland," one visitor told Radio Polonia.
Along with letters, members of the public brought books, medals, ration cards, furniture and items of clothing to be displayed.
The museum's goal is a serious one - to educate the public about the power of communism as well as its gargantuan scale and the enormity of its crimes. But judging by the donations, it might produce some smiles as well, with propaganda posters, 1960s perfumes, and even silk fabric bearing the likeness of Karl Marx among the items on exhibit.
It was hard parting with my favorite scarf - just consider it my gift to Stalin.
The museum is scheduled to open by year's end, and organizers have been busy beefing up their collection with the odds and ends of Varsovians eager to show younger Poles what life was like during Poland's nearly 50 years behind the Iron Curtain.
"I've brought a batch of letters from the martial law period, including those to and from my daughter living in France. They give many insights into what was an important chapter of communism in Poland," one visitor told Radio Polonia.
Along with letters, members of the public brought books, medals, ration cards, furniture and items of clothing to be displayed.
The museum's goal is a serious one - to educate the public about the power of communism as well as its gargantuan scale and the enormity of its crimes. But judging by the donations, it might produce some smiles as well, with propaganda posters, 1960s perfumes, and even silk fabric bearing the likeness of Karl Marx among the items on exhibit.
It was hard parting with my favorite scarf - just consider it my gift to Stalin.
