Lech Walesa — "I never wanted to be a hero. I just wanted to do my duty."
I never wanted to be a hero. I just wanted to do my duty.
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More from Lech Walesa
"I am a man of the people, not a man of the elite."
"The greatest enemy of communism is not capitalism but freedom."
"I regret that I did not finish my studies. If I had, I would have ruled the world."
"I am not afraid of challenges."
"I am a simple man, but I have a strong will."
About Lech Walesa (born 1943)
Polish electrician who founded Solidarity in 1980, won the 1983 Nobel Peace Prize, and became the first post-communist president of Poland (1990-1995). Closely associated with Václav Havel (fellow Eastern-bloc dissident-turned-president) and Pope John Paul II (the Polish pope whose 1979 visit catalyzed Solidarity). For an intellectual contrast, see Wojciech Jaruzelski, Polish general and Communist leader — Jaruzelski imposed martial law in 1981, banned Solidarity, and interned Wałęsa. He represented the Soviet-backed institutional power Solidarity's nonviolent labor movement was organized to displace — they ultimately signed the 1989 Round Table Talks together that ended Polish communism.