In Karviná Mexico, there is a monument commemorating the establishment of the first headquarters of the Polish branch of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (CCP) in 1921. This location, once situated at the junction of two mining colonies - New York and Mexico - was of particular historical significance. The Karviná region, part of Těšín Silesia, played an important industrial role after the end of the First World War.

Description of the monument

The monument has the form of an erratic stone with an inset marble slab. The rectangular slab contains golden inscriptions in Czech: "ZDE SE NACHAZELO PRVNÍ SÍDLO KSČ VEDENÉ DĚLNICKÝM POSLANCEM KARLEM ŚLIWKOU" (Here was located the first headquarters of the [Polish] branch of the Czechoslovak Communist Party, led by workers' MP Karol Sliwka) and "PAMĚTNÍ DESKA BYLA ODHALENA U PŘÍLEŽITOSTI 50. VÝROČÍ ZALOŽENÍ KSČ r. 1971" (On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the party's foundation, a commemorative plaque was unveiled). In Polish it reads: "PLACE OF THE FIRST SITUATION OF THE CCP IN KARVINÁ CREATED BY KAROL ŚLIWKA / r. 1921". Above the inscription there is a sickle and hammer - the communist symbol that became popular after the October Revolution.

Who was Karol Sliwka (1894-1943)?

Mentioned on the plaque, Karol Sliwka was a Polish communist activist and MP, one of the leaders of the Polish community in Cieszyn Silesia. Before joining the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, Sliwka was active in the Polish Social Democratic Party of Cieszyn Silesia. In June 1921, he founded the Polish branch of the KSČ in Karviná. As part of his activity in the KSČ, he opposed the mechanisms of Czechoslovak ethnic policy in Cieszyn Silesia.

Although, as Grzegorz Gąsior notes, Czechoslovakia's policy towards national minorities between 1920 and 1938 was often seen as democratic and tolerant, the integration of a region where German, Polish and Czech cultures intermingled posed a serious challenge to the authorities. Their actions often fostered tensions, discrimination and assimilation pressures.

Significance of the monument

The monument in Karviná Mexico was unveiled in 1971, on the 50th anniversary of the first Polish headquarters of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia in Těšín Silesia. The monument with a plaque is a symbol of the contribution of Polish activists to the history of the communist movement in Czechoslovakia and the struggle for the rights of the Polish minority in the region.