In a few days, several events converged: shots fired during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington and federal charges against Cole Tomas Allen, the state visit of King Charles III and Queen Camilla to the United States, the historic speech by the British monarch in the US Congress, the celebrations of the May 3rd Constitution Day in Chicago, new episodes of stories about lesser-known places of Polish presence in America, and the Polish Cup final at PGE Narodowy. For the Polish diaspora in the United States, it was a week where politics, history, sports, and remembrance overlapped almost hour by hour. This is a summary for those who couldn’t keep up.
Saturday, April 25: Shots at the Hilton
The week began with a shock. On Saturday evening, during the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner at the Washington Hilton hotel in Washington, a shooting occurred, after which Donald Trump was immediately evacuated by the Secret Service. The perpetrator was identified as Cole Tomas Allen, a 31-year-old resident of Torrance, California. On Monday, April 27, federal authorities charged him with attempted assassination of the President of the United States and firearms-related offenses. According to the prosecution, the case remains subject to further proceedings, including ballistic analyses.
The second week of May will bring the preliminary court hearing and likely further questions about the background of the case.
Monday, April 27: Charles III at the White House
On the second day of the week, King Charles III arrived in Washington with Queen Camilla. This was the first state visit by a British monarch to the United States in thirty-five years – the last time Elizabeth II appeared before the US Congress was in 1991. The welcoming ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House included a 21-gun salute, a parade by the US Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, anthems performed by the Marine Band, and a review of troops involving nearly five hundred soldiers from six branches of the US armed forces.
More serious matters were in the background: US-UK tensions over Iran policy and questions from Congressman Ro Khanna regarding issues related to Jeffrey Epstein and victims from his circle. Buckingham Palace declined to comment, citing ongoing legal proceedings. Charles behaved according to protocol.
Tuesday, April 28: A speech that surprised Washington
The most impactful day of the week was Tuesday. In the afternoon, around 3:00 PM Eastern Time, King Charles III stood before a joint session of the United States Congress. For the second time in history, a British monarch addressed this chamber. The speech lasted about thirty minutes. Charles spoke about NATO and Article 5. About defending Ukraine against “unprovoked aggression”. About multilateral institutions. About the “breakdown of key natural systems”. About the value of democratic institutions, whose foundation is the “special relationship” between the USA and UK – but one that transcends individual administrations.
The address was diplomatic in tone, but many American and British media interpreted it as a clear reminder of the importance of alliances and international institutions during a time of tensions with Washington. Charles did not mention Trump by name once. In the evening, during the white-tie state dinner in the East Room of the White House – the first such dinner for a British monarch at the White House since Elizabeth II’s visit to George W. Bush in 2007 – Donald Trump praised Charles’s speech: “He made a great speech. I was very jealous”. According to media reports, Trump also mentioned a conversation with the King about Iran, suggesting a convergence of views. Buckingham Palace does not confirm private conversations of the monarch. However, British non-proliferation policy is consistent with the line of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, so the thesis of “convergence” can in this context be interpreted as alignment with His Majesty’s Government’s policy.
Wednesday, April 29: Charles in New York, Polonia in Dakota
On Wednesday, Charles and Camilla, according to the visit program, traveled to New York. The British monarchy in the States did its part – politely, diplomatically, photographically.
On the same day, we launched a new editorial series “Invisible Polonia” – the first episode about Polish North Dakota. In the town of Warsaw in Walsh County stands the Gothic church of Saint Stanislaus, which local residents call the “Cathedral of the Prairie”. The Polish Catholic community formed there at the end of the 19th century; the first small church was built in 1883, and the current monumental temple, designed by John W. Ross, was consecrated in 1901. Throughout the Red River Valley of the North, other Polish parishes were established in towns such as Poland (yes, the town of Poland in Dakota!), Minto, Ardoch, and Florian. According to the American Community Survey, about fifteen thousand people of Polish descent currently live in North Dakota – less than two percent of the state’s population. This is a Polonia rarely present in the mainstream Polish-American media from Chicago, Detroit, or New York.
Thursday, April 30: Allen’s detention, Senate Marshal in Chicago
Thursday brought two matters. First: Cole Allen’s detention hearing took place in federal court in Washington. The preliminary hearing was set for May 11. The case will develop over many months.
Second: the Marshal of the Polish Senate, Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska, arrived in Chicago. According to the official communiqué from the Chancellery of the Senate of the Republic of Poland, she is beginning a four-day visit to the United States and Canada to celebrate the May 3rd Constitution Day. The program includes ceremonies at the Tadeusz Kościuszko Monument in Chicago, a flag-raising ceremony of the Republic of Poland at Daley Plaza, a “Mazowsze” concert at the Copernicus Center, and meetings with Polish-American institutions.
Friday, May 1: Second stage of “Invisible Polonia” – Panna Maria in Texas
We opened Friday with the second episode of the series on invisible Polonia. This time, Panna Maria in Karnes County, Texas – the oldest permanent Polish settlement in the United States. The settlement was founded in 1854 on the initiative of Father Leopold Moczygemba, who brought a group of about 150 settlers from Upper Silesia to Texas. According to local tradition, they arrived at a spot under a huge oak tree on Christmas Eve 1854. The first settlers sailed from Bremen on the sailing ships “Weser” and “Antoinette”, and on December 3, 1854, they reached Galveston; from there, they traveled on foot and by Mexican wagons deep into Texas towards the vicinity of San Antonio. Polonia in Chicago, Detroit, and New York did not yet exist – but Panna Maria already did.
Another interesting fact concerns the same Panna Maria: according to local tradition, in 1976, on the hundredth anniversary of the United States, the remains of Father Moczygemba were brought back from Detroit to Texas and buried in Panna Maria. A monument was erected to him with the inscription “Patriarch of American Polonia”.
Saturday, May 2: Parade in Chicago, final at Narodowy
The week ends today. In Chicago, the Marshal of the Polish Senate will participate in the 135th May 3rd Constitution Parade – one of the largest Polish-American parades in the States – together with the President of the Polish American Congress, Hubert Cioromski. In Warsaw, at 4:00 PM Warsaw time (10:00 AM EDT), Górnik Zabrze will face Raków Częstochowa in the final of the STS Polish Cup at PGE Narodowy. The pre-match studio starts at 3:30 PM Warsaw time on TVP Sport and tvpsport.pl, with television broadcast on TVP1 and TVP Polonia from approximately 3:55 PM. For American Polonia, Saturday morning brings coffee, television, the Polish league, and a Polish holiday all at once.
In the evening, Polish time, Niagara Falls in Canada will be illuminated in white and red with the participation of Marshal Kidawa-Błońska. Sunday, May 3: Mass for the Homeland in Mississauga, celebrations at the Patriot Monument in the John Paul II Polish Cultural Center.
What will remain after this week
From the editorial perspective, the week had three important threads that will stay with us longer. First: the British-American “special relationship” is entering a new phase. Charles III showed that the British monarchy does not intend to remain silent on matters of NATO, Ukraine, and climate, even when its American host deviates from these values. Trump publicly praised the speech. But internally, the Palace and Downing Street know that this was a pivotal moment. Next time, a British monarch in Congress will no longer be able to retract what Charles said on Tuesday.
Second: American Polonia has two hearts, not one. The big-city one – Chicago, Greenpoint, Detroit, Hamtramck. And the invisible one – Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Nebraska. These two generations of Polonia, who rarely meet, are both authentic. But the invisible Polonia is silent. It has no newspapers. It doesn’t shout. If we don’t visit this Polonia, it will disappear quietly, just as quietly as it emerged. The “Invisible Polonia” series will stay with us until the end of summer.
Third: the political world in 2026 is accelerating. Allen, Charles, Trump, Kidawa-Błońska, Iran, Polish Cup. Polonia in the States does not have the luxury of reading one thing at a time. Everything happens simultaneously. This is the price of being a member of two nations at once. But it is also a reason not to give up on any of these stories.
Have a peaceful weekend and May 3rd.
The Editorial Team, Voice of Polonia in the USA
Weekly Summary April 25 – May 2, 2026 | Saturday 25.04: shooting incident during WHCD at Washington Hilton; Cole Tomas Allen, 31, Torrance CA, arrested | Monday 27.04: Allen charged by federal authorities with attempted assassination of the president and firearms offenses; state visit of Charles III and Camilla to the White House, welcoming ceremony on South Lawn with 21-gun salute | Tuesday 28.04: Charles III in US Congress, approx. 30 minutes, second time in history (after Elizabeth II in 1991); topics: NATO and Article 5, defense of Ukraine, multilateralism, climate (“breakdown of key natural systems”); white-tie state dinner in East Room (first such dinner for a British monarch at the White House since 2007); Trump praised the speech and publicly referred to a conversation with the King about Iran | Wednesday 29.04: Charles and Camilla in New York according to visit program; launch of “Invisible Polonia” series – Polonia in North Dakota, St. Stanislaus church “Cathedral of the Prairie” in Warsaw, ND (first small church 1883, current temple consecrated in 1901, John W. Ross) | Thursday 30.04: Cole Allen’s detention hearing in federal court, preliminary hearing set for May 11; arrival of Senate Marshal Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska in Chicago | Friday 1.05: second episode of “Invisible Polonia” – Panna Maria in Texas (oldest Polish settlement in USA, 1854, Father Leopold Moczygemba, approx. 150 settlers from Upper Silesia); Senate Marshal with Polish-American institutions in Chicago | Saturday 2.05: 135th May 3rd Constitution Parade in Chicago; STS Polish Cup final Górnik Zabrze – Raków Częstochowa, PGE Narodowy, 4:00 PM Warsaw time (10:00 AM EDT), pre-match studio from 3:30 PM, television broadcast from approx. 3:55 PM on TVP1 and TVP Polonia; illumination of Niagara Falls in white and red | Sunday 3.05: May 3rd Constitution Day celebrations in Mississauga at the Patriot Monument | All details: poland.us
Full articles from the week: Shots at WHCD | Allen charged | Charles III at Trump’s | Charles III in Congress – preview | Charles III – speech analysis | Polonia in Dakota | Panna Maria in Texas | Senate Marshal in Chicago | Polish Cup Final
Read more at Poland.us.
