Freedom Smuggler (PL)

Maciej Kozłowski’s story is proof that bridges are built through action, courage, and empathy. From the transfer of “Kultura” through the Iron Curtain and the “Proces Taterników” (“The Tatra Mountaineers’ Trial”), through diplomacy in the US and Israel, to the battle for truth in lustration courts. The result is an intriguing report from the front lines of Polish and global transformations.

This story includes important encounters (Giedroyć, Turowicz, Karski, Kazik “Ratajzer” Rotem), the turbulent adventures of an ambitious alpinist, a smuggler of banned books, and a political prisoner, as well as insightful analyses of contemporary times (e.g., the situation in the Middle East and 21st-century populism). Plus, a chapter on… football in Kraków, revealing the multicultural roots of Polish sport, but also the hate in the stadiums.

This is also a manual of resilience: how to defend a community against hate speech, how to combine values with pragmatism, how to leverage the power of the European Union. And at the same time, it is a beautiful story about love, family, and friendships that endure throughout the ages.

This is an accompanying event organized by the Galicia Jewish Museum in cooperation with the “Kraków i Świat” magazine.

The meeting will be accompanied by a short music performance by Magda Brudzińska and Adam Niedzielin (piano).