A Polish-American expert on Eastern Europe at the library of Congress came to my Senate office to brief me on a trip to Poland. He told me that in 1946 he had been a graduate at Harvard teaching Polish. He had joined the local Polish-American Citizens Club, and the members had been invited to a memorial service in Cambridge, Mass., honoring a Polish-American solider killed in World War II. Endless speeches by local officials paid tribute to the historical ties between Poland and the United States. But again and again, the speakers stumbled over the names of Polish heroes, and the audience began to groan at each mistake.
Then Jack was introduced as a young Navy veteran who hoped to be the congressman for the district. He spoke with feeling of Poland and America, of Pulaski, Kisciusko, Pederewski and others. And each time mentioned a Polish name the pronunciation was flawless -- so much so that the crowd stirred, and voices in the audience began to joke in Polish, "I wonder what his name was before he changed it to Kennedy. Was it Kedziejewicz? Kedzierski?"
Jack won that election to the House of Representatives, and he carried the polish ward by more than 95 percent. -Senator Edward Kennedy
It pays to know your audience.
Then Jack was introduced as a young Navy veteran who hoped to be the congressman for the district. He spoke with feeling of Poland and America, of Pulaski, Kisciusko, Pederewski and others. And each time mentioned a Polish name the pronunciation was flawless -- so much so that the crowd stirred, and voices in the audience began to joke in Polish, "I wonder what his name was before he changed it to Kennedy. Was it Kedziejewicz? Kedzierski?"
Jack won that election to the House of Representatives, and he carried the polish ward by more than 95 percent. -Senator Edward Kennedy
It pays to know your audience.
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