Roman Pucinski Works for Polonia: An Interview with Richard Owsiany

Abstract

Brief biographies such as those that appear in encyclopedias generally outline the more significant events in the life of the subject but seldom give insight into how other people viewed the protagonist. Currently president of the Polish Museum of America in Chicago, Richard Owsiany has been active in the Polish American community for his entire adult life, including working as Roman Pucinski's chief legislative analyst in the Chicago City Council from 1983 to 1991. In this interview, he provides his insights into what it was like to work with Pucincki, the nebulous world of Chicago politics, and the priorities and achievements that made Pucincki so successful.