DEBATES AT THE MUSEUM OF POLISH HISTORY “Equality without equality? Women in the People's Republic of Poland”

DEBATES AT THE MUSEUM OF POLISH HISTORY

“Equality without equality? Women in the People's Republic of Poland”

The People's Republic of Poland declared gender equality as one of the foundations of a modern socialist society. The question, however, is how much of that was real social advancement and broadening opportunities, and how much was propaganda. We'll discuss this during our latest Debate at the Museum of Polish History. Join a meeting dedicated to the experiences of women in the People's Republic of Poland – between the promise of social advancement and the everyday reality of queues and shortages, between professional work and the “second shift” at home, between modernization and the persistence of traditional patterns.

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11 February 2026 (Wednesday), 6:00 PM

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Museum of Polish History | Warsaw Citadel, ul. Gwardii 1, Warsaw
conference room 1A–B [level 0]

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Free admission – free tickets must be picked up at the Museum ticket office (during opening hours) and online at https://tiny.pl/rdpfykn4r

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https://muzhp.pl/dojazd

The meeting will create space for an in-depth discussion about the experiences of women in the People's Republic of Poland – between declarations of equality and the realities of everyday life. We will talk about the ambitions, aspirations and dreams of women living under a socialist state, but also about survival strategies and negotiating agency within the imposed system. We will try to look beneath the surface of the iconography of “women on tractors” and ask about the real limits of equal rights – running between propaganda and experience, modernization and powerlessness, declared equality and the actual lack of choice.

During the meeting we will consider, among other things:

• where equal rights ended and systemic limitations began,
• how the state's modernization narrative affected women's experiences in work and private life,
• work, home, corporeality, motherhood, sexuality, violence – what official PRL narratives spoke about and what they remained silent on,
• everyday life: queues, shortages, and the persistence of traditional customs and family patterns.

Participants in the debate:

• Dr. habil. Błażej Brzostek – historian, professor at the Institute of History of the University of Warsaw; graduate of MISH UW, also trained at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris.
• Dr. habil. Barbara Klich-Kluczewska – historian, specializes in the social and cultural history of Central-Eastern Europe in the 20th century, history of the family, women and gender, and history of childhood; member of the Committee of Historical Sciences PAN (2020–2023, 2024–2027).
• Dr. habil. Magda Szcześniak – cultural studies scholar and historian of culture, assistant professor at the Institute of Polish Culture UW; author of the books “Poruszeni. Awans i emocje w socjalistycznej Polsce” (2023) and “Normy widzialności. Tożsamość w czasach transformacji” (2016).

Moderator: Dr. Michał Przeperski – Museum of Polish History.

See you at MHP!

Photographs come from the NAC collections, public domain.

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