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This chapter's focus is on Adolf Hitler, as well as his Aryan race, who did more than anyone else to bring the twentieth century to its knees through mass destruction and genocide. It notes that the irony of Hitler's leadership is that mass voluntarism, not just systemic coercion, and freedom of choice, not just the limits of choice, lie deeply buried within the Nazi system. It examines the Weimar Republic and the Versailles Treaty and the National Socialist Worker's Party. It also talks about Hitler's expansion through Poland and the war against the Jews that began when von Rath, a German diplomat, was murdered by Herschel Grynszpan, a Polish Jew expelled by the Nazis. It explores the war in Europe, the Soviet Union, and the war in Germany.

This book is a product of the series of conversations with the late Vanderlei José Mariá, a member of the Worker's Party (PT) in Brazil and one of the founding members of its black nucleus (Nucleo Negro), in 1988. Vanderlei was considered one of the Workers' Party's most promising young intellectuals during the mid-1980s, expressing an unusual hope and vision for the melding of the interests of the black movement with those of the (PT), helping to transform the PT into a party in both senses of the term—party as an expression of festivity and party as a form of political mobilization, organization, and discipline. His insights asserted his perspectives of Afro-Brazilian politics for a comunidadenegra which had wider implications for black politics and life–worlds in various nation–states.

This chapter examines the effects of Poland's international situation on changes within its borders, focusing on the period between January 1985 and September 1986. More specifically, it looks at the pressures applied by the Soviet Union and West Europe on Poland. It also considers the process by which foreign concerns about human rights abuses in Poland were linked to its economic situation, along with Poland's economic reforms and attempts to undermine Western sanctions. The chapter concludes by discussing the international influences on the Polish United Worker's Party's (PZPR) decision in September 1986 to declare a complete amnesty for political prisoners.

This chapter examines the relations between Poland and the United States, focusing on the period between September 1982 and January 1985. More specifically, it considers how decisions to lift individual U.S. sanctions were used to push for gradual reforms as part of what was known as the “step-by-step” policy. In one particular instance, sanctions were exchanged for political prisoners. This chapter also looks at the continuing work by humanitarian organizations, as well as the creation of the National Endowment for Democracy, which significantly increased resources provided by the United States in support of opposition underground in Poland. Finally, it discusses the role of Radio Free Europe and the Catholic Church within Poland, together with the efforts of the Polish United Worker's Party (PZPR) to liberalize and reform the system.