Thaddeus Radzilowski facts for kids
Thaddeus C. Radzilowski (born February 4, 1938, in Detroit – died July 20, 2018) was an important Polish-American historian, writer, and professor. He helped start the Piast Institute, which is a national center for Polish and Polish-American topics.
Radzilowski studied the history of Poland and other countries in Central and Eastern Europe, including Russia. He wrote a lot about these regions and how people moved from Central and Eastern Europe to other places. He was especially interested in social history and how history is written. He gave many talks in Europe and North America. He also wrote over 100 books, articles, and papers.
In 1999, Radzilowski received the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland. This award was for helping to share Polish culture around the world. In 2013, he received the Lech Walesa Media Award from former Polish president Lech Wałęsa.
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Early Life and Education
Thaddeus Radzilowski was born in Detroit, Michigan. His parents were Hieronim and Genowefa Radzilowski. He earned his first degree from Wayne State University in 1959. He later received two master's degrees (in 1960 and 1971) and a Ph.D. (in 1979) from the University of Michigan. His Ph.D. research was about a historian named N. P. Pavlov-Silvanskii.
His Writings and Research
Radzilowski helped edit a special magazine issue about Russian history. He also wrote a book called Feudalism, Revolution, and the Meaning of Russian History (1994).
He wrote many articles and book reviews for different magazines and newspapers. These included the Journal of American Ethnic History, Polish American Studies, and Slavic Review. He also wrote chapters for several book collections. Some of these were Polish Americans and their History (1996) and Rethinking Poles and Jews (2007).
About the Piast Institute
Thaddeus C. Radzilowski started the Piast Institute with Virginia Skrzyniarz in 2003. This institute is the biggest research center in North America that focuses on Polish and Polish-American issues. It is located in Hamtramck, Michigan.
Radzilowski made the Piast Institute a key research center. It is one of 59 U.S. Census Information Centers. This means it helps collect and share information about people. The institute also represents Poland and Polish-Americans in the United States.
The Piast Institute creates and shares information through research papers, conferences, and public talks. They also make teaching materials and exhibits. They help manage the Dekaban Foundations, which support student and professor exchanges between Polish universities and schools in the U.S., Canada, and Western Europe. The institute also hosts annual Dekaban Lectures. Famous speakers like Zbigniew Brzezinski and Alex Storozynski have given these talks.
The Piast Institute also helps immigrants with citizenship and immigration matters. They provide social services for immigrants from all backgrounds. The institute also works to help different ethnic groups get along. For example, they helped solve a disagreement about the Muslim community's Calls to Prayer in Detroit. They also work to build stronger cultural ties between Polish-Americans and African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, and Jewish-Americans.
The Piast Institute also works to protect Polish culture. They make sure there is healthy discussion between different cultural groups. In 2006, they helped lead a discussion about a book called FEAR: Anti-Semitism in Poland After Auschwitz. They also spoke out against calling Nazi concentration camps in Poland "Polish Death Camps." Their efforts helped the United Nations change the name of the "Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp" to the "Former Nazi German Concentration Camp Auschwitz-Birkenau."
Other Important Roles
Radzilowski was involved in many other important groups and projects:
- Ford Foundation Commission on Ethnicity in American Life
- Kosciuszko Foundation
- My Polish Story film (he was a consultant and narrator)
- National Polish-American Jewish-American Council (Co-Chairman)
- Polish American Historical Association (Past President)
- Polish National Alliance
- Polish National Congress (Michigan Director)
- Polish Roman Catholic Union of America
- Saint Mary's College, Orchard Lake (President Emeritus)
- The Polish Review (Editorial Board member)
- University of Michigan (Professor)
- Upper Midwest Ethnic Studies Association (Past President)
- National Polish Apostolate Committee
His Career Before Piast
Before starting the Piast Institute, Radzilowski taught at several universities. These included the University of Michigan - Dearborn, Madonna University, and Southwest Minnesota State University. At Southwest Minnesota State University, he was the head of the History Department. He also directed the Regional History Center and Rural Studies programs.
He was also the acting director of the Immigration Research Center at the University of Minnesota. He helped lead a program on International Business in Vienna. He also chaired an international meeting on migration at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow.
Radzilowski also advised the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and the U.S. Bureau of the Census. He worked with the National Endowment for the Humanities. He also advised the New Jersey Department of Education and other government groups on topics of ethnicity and diversity. He helped create many radio and television shows, including award-winning films for PBS and the Arts & Entertainment channel.
