Freedom fighter, cold warrior, friend of liberalism
By Clint Talbott
Edward Rozek’s early life was sure to be indelible. Born in Poland, he fled his native country during the German blitzkrieg of 1939, was captured in Hungary and then imprisoned for three months by the Nazis.
But he escaped, joined the First Polish Armored Division and fought alongside the British, French and Americans against the forces that shackled him and his country. He was wounded three times. The last injury left him temporarily blind. During his 10 months of convalescence, he thought carefully about what he wanted to do with his life.
He vowed that if he regained his sight, he would teach.
After the war, Dr. Rozek came to the United States with $50 in his pocket and a suitcase full of books. He worked his way through Harvard University, earning his bachelor’s degree magna cum laude, along with his master’s and doctoral degrees. So it was that Dr. Rozek, a Nazi-fighting war hero, came to the University of Colorado in 1956 and fulfilled his dream: to teach.
He was a professor of comparative governments and, later, political science.
Dr. Rozek, who died this spring at the age of 90, spent the next 53 years inspiring students, challenging campus administrators and arguing that the conservative point of view was under-represented at CU. He did what he could to rectify that perceived imbalance.
He also wrote “Allied Wartime Diplomacy: A Pattern in Poland,” described in the foreward as “a prime piece of documentation and analysis for all who would probe the brutal reality of Soviet policy, neither a riddle nor an enigma to those with eyes to see.”
Shortly after arriving on campus, Rozek helped students form a group called the Forum of Young Americans, which brought conservative speakers to campus. The group was controversial, with some contending that the forum helped to balance the left-leaning student groups and others arguing that the students were being “used,” according to “Glory, Colorado,” a two-volume official history of CU.
In a 1961 interview with the Rocky Mountain News (which also died this year at the age of 150), Rozek sounded a theme he would repeat in the decades that followed: “I believe any lack of tolerance and understanding is unfortunate,” he said. “I believe every academic institution should offer different points of view. There is no reason why students should not hear all viewpoints in a free society and decide for themselves which views will serve best.”
A pivotal experience came in March 1962, when the late U.S. Sen. Barry Goldwater, the Arizona Republican who ran for president in 1964, spoke to a packed house in Macky Auditorium. Dr. Rozek gave a long introduction of Goldwater, during which he lambasted the senator’s critics.
Goldwater’s appearance had drawn protests from the Young People’s Socialist League. The News characterized YPSL’s treatment of Goldwater as somewhere between “lively and rude.”
As “Glory Colorado” notes, Dr. Rozek distinguished between “these hooligans” and “a true liberal, who genuinely respects rights—others as well as his own.” He added: “What we need is a truly free marketplace of ideas—and support of the right of every man to be uncoerced and to work for the ideas he believes in.”
Criticism of Dr. Rozek was sometimes withering. After Goldwater’s appearance, the Colorado Daily, which then was the official student newspaper, published a letter from a student who referred to Rozek as a “second-rate scholar.” The paper later published a sharp critique from a fellow faculty member.
Shortly thereafter, Dr. Rozek filed a petition in Boulder district court seeking to compel testimony from several students and faculty members. Dr. Rozek contended that some colleagues were harassing him and impinging upon his academic freedom.
In the decades that followed, Dr. Rozek was routinely at odds with colleagues, administrators and regents. From time to time, he would repeat his critique of what he saw as ideological imbalance on campus, sometimes buttressing it with voting-registration records of faculty members.
But he was more than the sum of the battles he fought. He believed in the unfettered trade of goods and the free exchange of ideas. As he repeatedly stressed, American democracy depended on a core value of classic liberalism: well-informed and well-intentioned citizens competing for primacy in the marketplace of ideas.
“Our main enemy is not communism but complacency. Most people—and this applies to Republicans and Democrats alike—don’t work at their responsibilities to democracy in daily life,” he told the News in 1962.
He added: “We can’t preserve democracy by having tanks and missiles. We can preserve it by engaging in the struggle for the minds of men.”
Dr. Rozek was politically conservative (he was a member of Ronald Reagan’s 1980 campaign advisory team on defense and foreign policy), but he repeatedly endorsed a core value of liberalism: tolerance. In later years, he often said, “If you meet a genuine liberal, shake his hand.”
And while he remained both conservative and anti-communist, Dr. Rozek said his favorite U.S. president was Harry S. Truman, a Democrat who often railed against the “do-nothing Congress” then dominated by the Grand Old Party.
Even after retirement, Dr. Rozek continued to critique CU leaders. Privately, he argued that university administration should not be a career destination. He said administrators should be scholars serving temporary appointments and then returning to teaching and research.
Todd Gleeson, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, noted that administrators generally, and even he himself, were occasional targets of Dr. Rozek’s criticism. “But the students loved him.”
Many students did, indeed, hold a special place for Dr. Rozek. (See sidebar.)
Dr. Rozek’s widow, Beth Rozek, said he left a great legacy in his students. She said he had a “genuine vocation” for teaching and often said, “If I were a rich man, I would pay for the privilege of teaching.”
Mrs. Rozek observed: “Very few teachers at any level would say that. Nothing gave Edward greater satisfaction than the knowledge that he had helped a student reach his or her potential.”
We asked a few students what they thought of Professor Edward Rozek. This is how they replied:
“In my four years at CU, no professor touched off my intellectual curiosity like Professor Rozek. The passion with which he intertwined subject material and his own life experiences was truly inspiring. ‘Governments of Germany and Russia’ was the class that I was genuinely excited to go to twice a week. I am saddened to hear of his passing.”
“His congruence with Reagan's ‘right wing’ policy of containment was definitely against the academic and political zeitgeist of the time. For that reason, he took ‘incoming’ from many fronts. He never flinched. I am glad he witnessed the fall of the Soviet Union and the union of East and West Germany.”
“The man was brilliant. After just taking one of his classes, I changed my major from journalism to Central & East European Studies. His teachings and perspectives influenced my career choices—inspiring me to pursue a future in the intelligence and security industries. …
“His frank discussions, provocative lectures, and insistence that his students come away with an accurate understanding of historical events prepared me for many challenges in the years that followed. His integrity and selflessness were legendary.
“As a successful entrepreneur, I often speak to undergraduate and graduate students on topics such as integrity, ethics, and challenges faced when starting a business. I often think back to Dr. Rozek's delivery techniques and the way he could captivate his audiences with compelling anecdotes and historical references. To that end, he continues to influence and inspire me.”
“Hands down my favorite professor at CU in the mid-1990s! My political thinking at that time couldn't be more in opposition to his beliefs, yet his passion and intellectual strength inspired me in ways that continue to this day. I feel truly blessed to have taken three of his classes ... even the seminar on Central and Eastern Europe where he took me task for some sloppy and lazy work.
“He was a traditionalist with a big heart who cared so much for his students and his adopted homeland. In my view, one of the greatest Americans I have had the opportunity to know.”
“I took every course he offered during my time as a poli sci major in the 1970s. The offspring of a liberal-activist humanist family with deep New England roots, an anti- Vietnam War activist, Professor Rozek and my politics were very different. But that didn't matter to me. This guy had a story to tell.
“But more than that he had a view of the world, as in: ‘Kissinger is a babe in the woods of foreign policy’ at a moment when many thought he was brilliant. Appreciating his intellectual stance helped me grow as a man. It taught me that there are many visions of the world and to savor those with convictions who could actually articulate and bring others along. I loved studying for Rozek's courses—the only professor to elicit such a response in me—because he made learning (and Europe) come alive, perhaps for the first time.”
“I took every class Dr. Rozek offered as well as the wonderful opportunity to attend one the summer conferences he hosted. He was always vibrant, inspiring and challenging. The fantastic lessons I learned in his classes have greatly assisted me in executing missions in Italy, Germany, Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar and Afghanistan. He had a profound impact on my intellectual development and will be sorely missed. The ‘Old Soldier’ lives on in our hearts and minds!”
Dr. Edward Rozek (photo: Archives, University of Colorado at Boulder Libraries)
Edward Rozek’s early life was sure to be indelible. Born in Poland, he fled his native country during the German blitzkrieg of 1939, was captured in Hungary and then imprisoned for three months by the Nazis.
But he escaped, joined the First Polish Armored Division and fought alongside the British, French and Americans against the forces that shackled him and his country. He was wounded three times. The last injury left him temporarily blind. During his 10 months of convalescence, he thought carefully about what he wanted to do with his life.
He vowed that if he regained his sight, he would teach.
After the war, Dr. Rozek came to the United States with $50 in his pocket and a suitcase full of books. He worked his way through Harvard University, earning his bachelor’s degree magna cum laude, along with his master’s and doctoral degrees. So it was that Dr. Rozek, a Nazi-fighting war hero, came to the University of Colorado in 1956 and fulfilled his dream: to teach.
He was a professor of comparative governments and, later, political science.
Dr. Rozek, who died this spring at the age of 90, spent the next 53 years inspiring students, challenging campus administrators and arguing that the conservative point of view was under-represented at CU. He did what he could to rectify that perceived imbalance.
He also wrote “Allied Wartime Diplomacy: A Pattern in Poland,” described in the foreward as “a prime piece of documentation and analysis for all who would probe the brutal reality of Soviet policy, neither a riddle nor an enigma to those with eyes to see.”
Shortly after arriving on campus, Rozek helped students form a group called the Forum of Young Americans, which brought conservative speakers to campus. The group was controversial, with some contending that the forum helped to balance the left-leaning student groups and others arguing that the students were being “used,” according to “Glory, Colorado,” a two-volume official history of CU.
In a 1961 interview with the Rocky Mountain News (which also died this year at the age of 150), Rozek sounded a theme he would repeat in the decades that followed: “I believe any lack of tolerance and understanding is unfortunate,” he said. “I believe every academic institution should offer different points of view. There is no reason why students should not hear all viewpoints in a free society and decide for themselves which views will serve best.”
A pivotal experience came in March 1962, when the late U.S. Sen. Barry Goldwater, the Arizona Republican who ran for president in 1964, spoke to a packed house in Macky Auditorium. Dr. Rozek gave a long introduction of Goldwater, during which he lambasted the senator’s critics.
Goldwater’s appearance had drawn protests from the Young People’s Socialist League. The News characterized YPSL’s treatment of Goldwater as somewhere between “lively and rude.”
As “Glory Colorado” notes, Dr. Rozek distinguished between “these hooligans” and “a true liberal, who genuinely respects rights—others as well as his own.” He added: “What we need is a truly free marketplace of ideas—and support of the right of every man to be uncoerced and to work for the ideas he believes in.”
Barry Goldwater's 1962 appearance on campus, and the student response to it, marked an important chapter in Dr. Rozek's service at CU. (Image courtesy of the Library of Congress)
Criticism of Dr. Rozek was sometimes withering. After Goldwater’s appearance, the Colorado Daily, which then was the official student newspaper, published a letter from a student who referred to Rozek as a “second-rate scholar.” The paper later published a sharp critique from a fellow faculty member.
Shortly thereafter, Dr. Rozek filed a petition in Boulder district court seeking to compel testimony from several students and faculty members. Dr. Rozek contended that some colleagues were harassing him and impinging upon his academic freedom.
In the decades that followed, Dr. Rozek was routinely at odds with colleagues, administrators and regents. From time to time, he would repeat his critique of what he saw as ideological imbalance on campus, sometimes buttressing it with voting-registration records of faculty members.
But he was more than the sum of the battles he fought. He believed in the unfettered trade of goods and the free exchange of ideas. As he repeatedly stressed, American democracy depended on a core value of classic liberalism: well-informed and well-intentioned citizens competing for primacy in the marketplace of ideas.
“Our main enemy is not communism but complacency. Most people—and this applies to Republicans and Democrats alike—don’t work at their responsibilities to democracy in daily life,” he told the News in 1962.
He added: “We can’t preserve democracy by having tanks and missiles. We can preserve it by engaging in the struggle for the minds of men.”
Dr. Rozek was politically conservative (he was a member of Ronald Reagan’s 1980 campaign advisory team on defense and foreign policy), but he repeatedly endorsed a core value of liberalism: tolerance. In later years, he often said, “If you meet a genuine liberal, shake his hand.”
And while he remained both conservative and anti-communist, Dr. Rozek said his favorite U.S. president was Harry S. Truman, a Democrat who often railed against the “do-nothing Congress” then dominated by the Grand Old Party.
Even after retirement, Dr. Rozek continued to critique CU leaders. Privately, he argued that university administration should not be a career destination. He said administrators should be scholars serving temporary appointments and then returning to teaching and research.
Todd Gleeson, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, noted that administrators generally, and even he himself, were occasional targets of Dr. Rozek’s criticism. “But the students loved him.”
Many students did, indeed, hold a special place for Dr. Rozek. (See sidebar.)
Dr. Rozek’s widow, Beth Rozek, said he left a great legacy in his students. She said he had a “genuine vocation” for teaching and often said, “If I were a rich man, I would pay for the privilege of teaching.”
Mrs. Rozek observed: “Very few teachers at any level would say that. Nothing gave Edward greater satisfaction than the knowledge that he had helped a student reach his or her potential.”
Students recall Professor Rozek fondly
We asked a few students what they thought of Professor Edward Rozek. This is how they replied:
“In my four years at CU, no professor touched off my intellectual curiosity like Professor Rozek. The passion with which he intertwined subject material and his own life experiences was truly inspiring. ‘Governments of Germany and Russia’ was the class that I was genuinely excited to go to twice a week. I am saddened to hear of his passing.”
Brett Green
Business, ‘94
“Two of my most memorable professors during my time at CU in the late ‘60s (were) Professor Rozek and (a professor of statistics). They fought on different sides during the war, but they both came to the United States and had a gift for making their subjects alive and interesting.”
Jeff Mason
Business, ‘69
“Dr. Rozek was responsible for my choice to pursue political science as a field of study. … I took every class from him that I could. Although at the time my personal political views were far more liberal than his, I respected him.
“There was a very compassionate side of him that not many saw in the classroom. My grandmother passed away during one term, and her death was so devastating to me that I was not able to take exams at the regular time. He allowed me to take the exam in his office once I had emotionally recovered. He was the only professor that made that exception for me.”
Janice Newland
Political science, ‘86
“His congruence with Reagan's ‘right wing’ policy of containment was definitely against the academic and political zeitgeist of the time. For that reason, he took ‘incoming’ from many fronts. He never flinched. I am glad he witnessed the fall of the Soviet Union and the union of East and West Germany.”
Jim Romary
Political science, ‘83
“The man was brilliant. After just taking one of his classes, I changed my major from journalism to Central & East European Studies. His teachings and perspectives influenced my career choices—inspiring me to pursue a future in the intelligence and security industries. …
“His frank discussions, provocative lectures, and insistence that his students come away with an accurate understanding of historical events prepared me for many challenges in the years that followed. His integrity and selflessness were legendary.
“As a successful entrepreneur, I often speak to undergraduate and graduate students on topics such as integrity, ethics, and challenges faced when starting a business. I often think back to Dr. Rozek's delivery techniques and the way he could captivate his audiences with compelling anecdotes and historical references. To that end, he continues to influence and inspire me.”
Roland Schumann
Political science, ‘84
“Hands down my favorite professor at CU in the mid-1990s! My political thinking at that time couldn't be more in opposition to his beliefs, yet his passion and intellectual strength inspired me in ways that continue to this day. I feel truly blessed to have taken three of his classes ... even the seminar on Central and Eastern Europe where he took me task for some sloppy and lazy work.
“He was a traditionalist with a big heart who cared so much for his students and his adopted homeland. In my view, one of the greatest Americans I have had the opportunity to know.”
Daniel Michalski
Economics, ‘96
“I took every course he offered during my time as a poli sci major in the 1970s. The offspring of a liberal-activist humanist family with deep New England roots, an anti- Vietnam War activist, Professor Rozek and my politics were very different. But that didn't matter to me. This guy had a story to tell.
“But more than that he had a view of the world, as in: ‘Kissinger is a babe in the woods of foreign policy’ at a moment when many thought he was brilliant. Appreciating his intellectual stance helped me grow as a man. It taught me that there are many visions of the world and to savor those with convictions who could actually articulate and bring others along. I loved studying for Rozek's courses—the only professor to elicit such a response in me—because he made learning (and Europe) come alive, perhaps for the first time.”
Spike Squire
Political science, ‘76
“I took every class Dr. Rozek offered as well as the wonderful opportunity to attend one the summer conferences he hosted. He was always vibrant, inspiring and challenging. The fantastic lessons I learned in his classes have greatly assisted me in executing missions in Italy, Germany, Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar and Afghanistan. He had a profound impact on my intellectual development and will be sorely missed. The ‘Old Soldier’ lives on in our hearts and minds!”
Maj. Dave Bigelow
Political science, ‘97