OUT OF STEP

There was a time when the "L" word, standing for liberal, was considered a nasty label. Today, however, the "C" word, meaning conservative, is taking over as an opprobrious marker. The switch has been occurring at the same time as Polish Americans, almost all of whom were once Democrats, appear to have moved in large numbers to the Republican side, thus earning the dubious right to be called by the C word. This, for some reason, although American-born Polonia has remained largely Democratic in the east, Chicago’s community has become seriously divided in political terms.

It’s hard to explain just why many Polonians have made the shift, but it can be traced as far back as Ronald Reagan, famous for his "evil empire" anti-communist days. That gambit pleased Poles, of course, as it did large segments of the general population. Even though Nixon courted Communist China (though not the Soviets) and the two Bush administrations have done little for Poland, almost totally ignoring Polish Americans, the rightward move stuck. Reagan, although adored by the far-right, was ranked by a large number of historians as the worst of America’s presidents, being now edged out only by George W. Bush. Still, although snubbed by conservatives at every turn, the Polish Americans of which we speak remain loyal to their new partisanship.

Another cause of the apparent change in party allegiance has been the entry of newly immigrated Poles, a large part of Chicago’s Polonian community, into the political scene. Violently anti-communist, they quickly bought into the Republican claim that Democrats were soft on communism, failing to know or understand the underlying facts. That Democratic administrations were largely responsible for attempting to stem Marxist advances in Korea or Vietnam was unknown to them. At the same time, they seemingly ignore that the ill-fated Iraq war, which has nothing to do with communism and had everything to do with oil and reelection, deserves a genuine conservative label.

The leaders of many Polish organizations have been or are aligned with conservative politics. Suffice it to say that their own financial situations allow that as an easy choice, but the position of the Church, to which their members are loyal in vast numbers, is also an aspect. The Church, though sincerely committed to alleviating many societal problems, is strongly conservative on some issues and organization heads have no stomach for disagreement. Hence, the influence of Polonian leaders, respected by large segments of our community, brings others into the fold on the right. Frankly, it is an undemanding choice.

Perhaps the final major factor may be the success of so many Polish Americans. Moving from blue collar to white collar status, becoming upper middle class, gravitating to the more affluent suburbs, they deserted social causes in return for financial aggrandizement, a cause for which it is difficult to cast blame on anyone. After all, it is more appealing to believe the conservative promise of a thicker personal wallet, than accept the liberal causes of assisting the poor or providing universal medical care.

Republicans and even non-aligned conservatives will take offense by the foregoing analysis. It is not meant, however, to cast aspersions on anyone, but simply to attempt an understanding of a change within Polonia. It might not even be worthy of study, if it did not help us to comprehend why Polonia is now so ignored by political circles. The incontrovertible fact is that while the nation moves in one direction, Polonia has been moving in a diametrically opposite way. One need only look at the totals in the recent primary elections. In almost every case, though not emphasized by the largely conservative media, Democratic voters have been double and even triple the number of those asking for Republican ballots. It is probably the most telling, though least exposed, truth in these contests.

Ignored? Yes, we are. That happens when a group is out of step with the nation’s trends. A willfully isolated segment of the population simply does not count in the political sphere.