ABSTRACT
The fall of communist regimes opened the way for political participation and mobilisation. Some of this has taken the form of contentious collective action against what people see as an uncaring state and self-serving and even corrupt elites. Poland, in particular, with its long tradition of radical protest, has seen relatively high levels of disruptive mobilisation (Ekiert and Kubik 1998). This chapter will examine how Samoobrona (Self-defence) has channelled discontent into large-scale disruptive collective action. The legacy of protest has helped to legitimise such forms of action in the eyes of large sections of civil society. Moreover, many political elites have had personal experience of (mostly) nonviolent, but disruptive protests in the form of strikes and sit-ins as well as street demonstrations under the communist regime. The most widespread protests took place under the banner of Solidarity.
