Abstract

A remarkable book by Nina Witoszek, an outstanding compatriot of ours, originally published in the USA, where it has aroused well-deserved interest among both professional and avid readers, forms the background for this essay. Populist nationalist tendencies growing within existing, but also well-established democracies, having authoritarian thinking at their core, constitute a threat not only to individual freedom but also to the effective functioning of societies. The strengthening of democracies, i.e. systems that are fundamentally democratic but significantly imbued with authoritarian elements, is a serious challenge for contemporary states (Hungary, Belarus, Poland, the USA under Donald Trump, Taiwan, Turkey, Liberia, Hong Kong and others). Overcoming these authoritarian tendencies is seen in Witoszek’s book as an initiative taken by small social groups releasing social energy to build grassroots democracy known from history as constructive and effective initiatives, e.g. KOR and later “Solidarity” in Poland. The book is an apotheosis of the friendship of groups of so-called ‘humanist renegades’ who evoke the impulse of change and their energy and way of thinking are instilled in the broad masses of society thus delivering the anti-authoritarian message of sustainable modernity.