GREENPOINT — Blessed Father Jerzy Popieluszko was a hero during the Solidarity movement against communism in Poland in the 1980s, but there is nothing heroic about the city’s neglect of a Brooklyn park named in his honor, residents and civic leaders said.
Father Jerzy Popieluszko Square, a 3,000-square-foot green space at 33 Nassau Avenue — meant to serve as a small, quiet oasis of greenery — has turned into a litter-filled, graffiti-scarred space with overgrown weeds, said Marek Skulimowski, president of the Kosciuszko Foundation, a Polish civic organization.
“Whenever I am there, I am stunned to see the condition it is in,” said Skulimowski, who added that it’s an ongoing problem. “Letting this square fill with trash, graffiti, and overgrown bushes is not an oversight. It is a demonstration of the city’s indifference to our history.”
From time to time, students from local Polish cultural schools in the traditionally Polish community of Greenpoint participate in cleanups of the square, Skulimowski said.
“This is not the responsibility of volunteers or the people who live in the neighborhood. The city should be doing regular cleaning and gardening there,” he added. “They need to stay on top of it.”
The Tablet visited Father Jerzy Popieluszko Square on the afternoon of July 16, and there was clothing and other items haphazardly tossed next to one of the benches. There was also trash on the square’s grassy area.
“I’m most definitely concerned about the condition of the park,” said Liz Rose
Schneider, who was sitting on a bench near the square’s Nassau Avenue entrance that afternoon, taking a break from work.
We do have some beautiful sculptures here, but because of the weeds, you can’t really enjoy them,” she said. “There are weeds everywhere.”
Blessed Father Popieluszko (1947-1984) was a Catholic priest who spoke out against the Communist government and publicly sided with factory workers and shipbuilders in Warsaw when they went on strike in the early 1980s to protest living conditions. He defied the government and crossed barricades to administer Communion to the striking workers.
He was also known as a charismatic speaker who delivered passionate homilies at Masses.
Blessed Father Popieluszko was kidnapped by members of the Polish Security Service (a Communist counter-intelligence agency) who killed him and dumped his body in a reservoir.
An estimated 1 million people attended his funeral, including Lech Walesa, the leader of the Solidarity freedom movement and the country’s future president.
New York City dedicated Father Jerzy Popieluszko Square in 1985, a year after his assassination, and erected a monument to him in 1990.
Father Popieluszko was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010, earning him the title of blessed.
The condition of the square named in his honor is not a recent problem. In 2021, The Tablet reported on vandalism in the square. Vandals poured garbage at the base of the monument, covered the priest’s statue with a plastic bag, and scrawled “No Polish” on the monument. The area was cleaned, but the vandals were never caught.
Councilmember Lincoln Restler, who represents the area, said he shares the concerns about the sloppiness of the square named after the hero priest.
“It has frustrated me for years that the conditions haven’t met our expectations,” he said.
After recent media reports pointed out the square’s sorry condition, Restler said he contacted the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation and convinced the agency to visit the site.
“I’m really grateful that the Parks Department has significantly increased its maintenance and cleaning work at Father Popieluszko Square. We’re also partnering with a few community groups that have been doing cleanup events,” said Restler, who added that a volunteer cleanup is scheduled for Sunday, July 26.
“I’m really hopeful that the Parks Department, our neighbors and our community volunteers are collectively stepping up to help us improve the conditions once and for all,” Restler said.
The city’s Parks Department did not respond to The Tablet’s request for comment.