Quick quiz. What do Michigan, Poland and the American South have in common? They all lost the equivalent of a major war, forever changing their identities and traditions. Dome Magazine, May 16, 2010..

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War and Transformation
By rgoins (https://domemagazine.com/author/rgoins/) on May 16th, 2010
Bridges

2. War and Transformation
by Joseph J. Serwach
May 16, 2010
Quick quiz. What do Michigan, Poland and the American South have in common?
Give up? They all lost the equivalent of a major war, forever changing their identity and traditions.
The South, of course, lost the Civil War and was torn apart by economic collapse as well as racial and cultural issues for decades. The main reason the
American South has always been so different from the rest of the United States, according to historian C. Van Woodward’s The Burden of Southern
History, was that from 1865 to 1975, the South was the only region of the United States that had lost a war.
That loss, Van Woodward, argued, made Southerners more nostalgic about preserving or returning to the perceived glories of a distant pre-war past,
more romantic, less trusting of outsiders, clinging to their traditions and the culture that made them distinct. They were also less optimistic.
After the Vietnam War, the rest of the United States had lost a war as well and “caught up,’’ becoming more nostalgic about earlier times, less hopeful
about the future.
Poland, like the Confederate States of America, was erased from the map during much of the 19th century. Unlike the Confederacy, Poland would
become an independent nation again in 1918, only to be crushed again from 1939 to 1989. Poland lost more lives (18 percent of its people) and more
wealth than any other nation during World War II and then suffered through 44 years of communism before leading Eastern Europe into a turbo-
charged, post-communist, “world is flat’’ capitalist/global economy world starting in 1989. The walls came down and the world was never again the
same.
But Michigan didn’t lose that kind of a war…or did it?
There certainly was no shooting war, no great loss of lives (as a U.S. territory, Michigan surrendered without firing a shot during the War of 1812 — one
of the reasons our state flag says “Tuebor,’’ meaning “I will defend).
Michigan’s more profound losses came in the economic competition with Asia that escalated in the 1970s and culminated last year, costing the state one
million jobs over the past decade.
Michigan’s economic war even resulted in its own kind of surrender, when two of the Big Three automakers filed for bankruptcy in 2009.
Poland lost to great powers like Russia (aka the Soviet Union) and Germany. The South similarly lost to the greater power of the North. The great
powers for Michigan? GM was taken over by the U.S. government and Chrysler was taken over by Fiat. None of the auto companies or their cultures will
ever be the same as they were before the 21st century.
quote
So perhaps it is not surprising when you read commentators comparing Michigan to Mississippi. Michigan is actually home to a great number of former
Southerners who emigrated here during Michigan’s industrial glory days when the South was still down. Michigan also has one of the largest
concentrations of Polish Americans in the nation, about 8 percent of the population.
Poland, the American South and Michigan, similarly were forced into major massive economic transformations, changing industries, changing lifestyles,
changing cultures, traditions and ways of life. But they all carried on.
For much of the 1800s and 1900s, Poland and the American South were tragic places, scarred by massive changes. Recovery seemed unlikely for both.
And yet, both Poland and the South became very different successful places over the last 20 years, changing from victims to role models.
Michigan institutions today strive to be more like counterparts in places like North Carolina, Texas and Georgia, while the reverse was the case only a few
decades ago.
Much of the old communist world now strives to be more like Poland today, putting it in a very different role than it had been in for centuries. Pope John
Paul II inspired millions to fight off communism the way 18th century Polish patriots inspired revolutions against authoritarians.
Tragedy returned to Poland in April when a plane carrying Poland’s first family and much of its elite crashed, killing more than 100, including much of
that nation’s political, business and military elite. But there was no anarchy. Poles mourned and succession plans went into place. The 20-year-old
democracy held well and carries on.
I grew up in Michigan and took my first job in South Carolina, which was beginning a boom in 1987 yet still clinging to ancient relics like a Confederate
flag — a symbol of racism to many Americans, but a point of pride to many Southerners. I think of that debate when I hear debates in Michigan over
which traditions and norms we will cling to in the years ahead and which will be dropped in this new global world.
This summer, my wife and I will be leading a University of Michigan Alumni Association trip to Poland, so I thought, too, about the new Poland on the
day that plane crashed in Russia.
It was a warm Michigan spring day and I found myself jolted by this battered old boxelder tree near the back of our property. The tree is on the slope of
a hill. Huge branches have broken off it.
My father-in-law insisted it was dead. He tried to cut it. We burned brush around it. It was blackened by Kingsford coals (a Michigan-made invention),
lighter fluid and bonfires. And that’s when I noticed new branches blooming out of the top of a tree we were certain looked dead not long ago.
That Michigan tree reminds me of Michigan. That tree reminds me of Poland and it reminds me of the American South.
Joseph J. Serwach, a long-time Michigan journalist, now works for the University of Michigan, where he is also a part-time graduate student studying
higher education, public policy and business.
rgoins (https://domemagazine.com/author/rgoins/)

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Great insight and analysis, Joe, but what Michigan is missing that Poland got was dynamic leadership. Michigan has so much to offer,
so much to build upon. I can’t believe that there will not step forward dynamic individuals with creativity and imagination to restart a
new economic engine.
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Joseph J. Serwach. Joseph J. Serwach said: What do Michigan, Poland and the
American South have in common? http://ping.fm/kG0UY (http://ping.fm/kG0UY) Wrote this for class. My policy prof found it a
home.. […]
I agree with Ron, this piece is as thought provoking as any I’ve read in a while. A solid foundation for optimism, not just more idle talk.
Perhaps Michigan should advertise dreamers wanted, we seem to have an amble supply of everything else.
I love this essay for its poignancy and historicity. Joe connects dots. Bravo!
cJDvhojK February 8, 2014 at 6:47 pm
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