Kalisz on 17 September 2026 celebrated the 87th anniversary of russian aggression against Poland and Sybirak Day. At 10 a.m. in Ogrójec, the Jesuits were given flowers by the obelisk of the Sibirus exiles, and then a mass was celebrated in the Garrison Church. It's a public lesson in the fact about the price of losing independence.
Flowers at the Obelisk of Siberians
The inhabitants of Kalisz, representatives of local government, parliamentarians, uniforms, communist and social organizations and students of Kalisz schools met in Ogrójc monastery of Jesuits. Delegations filed bundles at an obelisk dedicated to the exiles of Siberia and lit candles. Later the participants went to the Garrison Church at Kolegialna Street, where the Holy Mass was celebrated.
Such a celebration was foretold official calendar of September patriotic events of Kalisz. The place wasn't random. Obelisk reminds of Poles torn from homes and sent into the russian Union, frequently full families.
The presence of students is of peculiar importance here. Witnesses of exiles are reduced, so the burden of conveying the fact is passed on to families, schools, and state institutions. Poznań celebrations of the same anniversary show that local ceremonies form a nationwide memory community.
The aggression followed by terror
On September 17, 1939, the Red Army attacked Poland fighting a German invasion. The Soviets broke existing agreements, and the seizure of the east lands of the Republic opened the way for systemic repression of Polish citizens. The occupier struck people capable of sustaining statehood, local elites, and families recognized as an obstacle to Sovietization.
The Institute of National Memory describes the mechanics of 4 deportations from 1940–1941: making a letter, nightly arrests, transport and life on the exile. It was a planned policy of state violence, not a side effect of war chaos. Poles lost their homes, wellness and loved ones, but many retained their language, religion and bond with their homeland.
In 2013, the Sejm established on September 17 Sybirak Day. The resolution pays tribute to the exiled, to those who died, returned to Poland or remained outside its borders, nurturing Polishness. The state rank of that day obliges public authorities to do more than ceremonial gestures. There is simply a request for sustained historical education.
Historical fact protects the state
Kaliska's celebration came at a time erstwhile Russian historical policy again attempts to blur the work of the russian Union. Negotiating the nature of aggression on September 17 serves the modern propaganda of Moscow. Poland cannot respond to silence or dispute about whether historical memory is inactive needed.
The nation's opposition to lies is at stake. Flowers lodged in Kalisz are crucial due to the fact that they bind the past of circumstantial families to the work of the state and the young generation. Sovereignty starts with the fact about who attacked Poland and the consequences of its citizens.
Source: Radio Poznań, Kalisz City Council, Institute of National Memory
Source: Radio Poznań
