Contributions were imposed on them and they were forced to grow flax
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Marie Poláková, née Petráková, was born on 23 April 1952 in Jilemnice. She came from a Catholic family and attended church from childhood. Her mother was imprisoned by the Germans during the Second World War for sabotage of labour. Her grandfather and uncle refused to join a cooperative farm after 1948 and continued to farm privately. She lived with her parents, sister Helena and brother Jaromír on a farm in Štěpanice. In 1968 she protested against the occupation with her parents in Jilemnice. She trained as a men’s dressmaker and began working for the Vkus cooperatice company in Vrchlabí. In 1973 she married and had a daughter Štěpánka and a son Ondřej. In 1977 she moved with her family to Vrchlabí and then worked at Kablo until her retirement. From Jiří Wonka she learned details about the text of Charter 77. In the 1980s she became a member of the Czechoslovak people´s Party (ČSL). She used to go on trips and pilgrimages with the local Catholic community. In November 1989, she particpated in demonstrations in the Vrchlabí square. In 2023 she was living in Vrchlabí.
