Anna Walentynowicz

Solidarity Co-Founder, Trade Unionist, Dissident, Worker Hero

Born Aug 15, 1929

Rivne, Ukraine

Passed Away Apr 10, 2010 Smolensk, Russia

Lifespan 80 years old

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Notice / Correction

"If we stand together, they cannot defeat us. Truth has its own power."

Archival Overview

Heroic Polish crane operator and trade unionist whose wrongful dismissal from the Gdańsk shipyard in August 1980 sparked the strike that birthed the Solidarity movement.

Biographical Record

Anna Walentynowicz worked as a welder and crane operator at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk. Known for her honesty and fearless advocacy for workers' safety and rights, she joined the underground Free Trade Unions of the Coast in 1978, suffering relentless harassment and arrests by the communist secret police.

On August 7, 1980, five months before her retirement, she was fired on fabricated charges. Her fellow workers launched a general strike demanding her reinstatement, which rapidly grew into the nationwide Solidarity movement that shook the Soviet bloc. Walentynowicz tragically died in the 2010 Smolensk aircraft disaster.

Key Life Milestones

1980

The Strike that Sparked Solidarity

Her firing at the Gdańsk Lenin Shipyard triggered the massive strike that forced the communist regime to recognize independent unions.

2006

Order of the White Eagle

Awarded Poland's highest decoration for her historic role in reclaiming national freedom and human rights.

Memorial Guestbook & Tributes

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Rest in Peace Forever remembered and cherished Your legacy lives on in all of us With deep gratitude for your life and light

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Final Resting Place

Perpetual Memorial

Srebrzysko Cemetery
Gdańsk, Poland

                         GPS: 54.3802, 18.5779                    

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