Bloc of National Minorities

Bloc of National Minorities
Founded	1922
Dissolved	1930
Headquarters	Warsaw, Poland
Ideology	Minority politics, Ethnic minority interests, Regionalism, Federalism
Political position	Centre
Politics of Poland Political parties Elections

Blok Mniejszości Narodowych (Polish pronunciation: [ˈblɔɡ mɲɛjˈʂɔɕtɕi narɔˈdɔvɨx], BMN; English: Bloc of National Minorities; Belarusian: Блёк нацыянальных меньшасьцяў, Bliok nacyjanałnych mieńšaściaŭ; Ukrainian: Блок національних меншин, Blok Natsional'nykh Menshyn; German: Block der Nationalen Minderheiten; Yiddish: בלאָק פון נאַשאַנאַל מינאָריטיעס‎, Blok fon Nashonal Minorities), was a political party in the Second Polish Republic, representing a coalition of various ethnic minorities in Poland, primarily Ukrainians, Belarusians, Jews and Germans. The Bloc was co-founded by Yitzhak Gruenbaum, a Polish-Jewish politician. BMN took part in the Polish legislative election, 1922, Polish legislative election, 1928 and Polish legislative election, 1930, doing very well in the 1922 elections (19.5% and the second largest party) and '28 elections (14% and the third largest party). In 1930 elections which were considered not free, it fared poorly (3% and the ninth largest party). In the political shakedown following the 1930 elections, the Bloc was dissolved.

In the Second Polish Republic, ethnic minorities constituted 1/3 of total population.

Notable members

Belarusians

• Branisłaŭ Taraškievič
• Jan Stankievič
• Adam Stankievič

Germans

• Heinrich Greitzer
• Adolf Rause
• Karl Wilhelm Lutticher

Jews

• Yitzhak Gruenbaum
• Jakub Wygodzki
• Noach Pryłucki
• Apolinary Hartglas
• Jakub Lejb Mincberg

Ukrainians

• Volodomyr Turchyniv
• Oleksii Sorydychiv
• Oleksander Syntyvich