The 70th Anniversary of Student Day

May, 19th 1956- May 19th 2026

A Memory of Struggle and a Journey of Nation- Building

On 19 May 1956, Algerian students fully embodied the noble principles of the November 1st, 1954 Revolution, reaffirming their unwavering commitment to the national liberation struggle. In response to the call issued by the General Union of Algerian Muslim Students, students from all academic levels and disciplines abandoned their school and university studies to join the revolutionary struggle alongside the mujahideen, in defence of the homeland and the national cause.

This event was far from coincidental. The Algerian student movement had never stood apart from the course of national history. Rather, since its emergence in 1919, it had remained closely aligned with the national movement, both within Algeria and abroad. Initially embedded within a broader North African framework, it gradually assumed a distinctly national character with the establishment of the General Union of Algerian Muslim Students in 1955, while its fundamental objective remained unchanged: resistance to colonial domination and policies.

In 19 May 1956, Student Strike was a decisive turning point in the history of the Algerian Revolution, during which thousands of Algerian students and pupils abandoned their studies to join the national liberation struggle against French colonial rule. Initiated in response to the call of the General Union of Algerian Muslim Students (UGEMA), the strike demonstrated the commitment of Algerian youth and intellectuals to the cause of independence and their support for the Revolution of 1 November 1954. The strike call had a profound and far-reaching impact on Algerian students abroad, where they responded collectively and joined their compatriot.

The events of 19 May 1956 thus constitute a decisive culmination of the student movement’s efforts toward unity and solidarity around the supreme aspiration of the Algerian people: independence. They further reflect the political maturity and heightened awareness of the Algerian elite in confronting one of the most formidable colonial powers of the time.

More than half a century later, this commemorative date remains a solemn reminder of the students who relinquished their personal academic and professional prospects in pursuit of a cause they deemed greater than themselves: the liberation of an entire nation.