ABSTRACT
The chapter presents the history, patterns of institutionalization and repertoire of actions used by atheist and secularist organizations in Poland. Cases of declared atheism date back to the 16th century, but the history of organized collective action began at the turn of the 20th century. Since then, the social movement has been developing intensively, passing through several major phases, determined by significant changes in historical circumstances. The Second Polish Republic (1918–1939) was a period of intensive activity in the Polish freethinking movement. This movement was antisystemic at the time as its activists and supporters constituted a minority in the sense of both numbers and culture. After the Second World War, during the period of the Polish People’s Republic (1945–1989), the Polish state passed into the sphere of influence of the Soviet Union. The new socialist authorities treated religion as an inhibitor of social development. The social movement of atheists and freethinkers in Poland became predominantly systematic and top down. After 1989, Poland experienced rapid socio-political changes that strongly affected the atheist and secular environments, accelerated by intensive development in the sphere of information and communications technology.
