The anti-Franco student movement’s contribution to the return of democracy in Spain

Abstract

This paper analyzes the role played by the student movement in the restitution of democracy in Spain. Taking as a starting point the situation of university under the Franco dictatorship, and how (and why) students were dealt with, the major features that set the student movement apart from other kinds of activism in that time are described and linked to the unique effects that it had on the status quo, with a special stress on its ability to generate the kind of cultural change required for overcoming the atmosphere of resignation and consent that helped to keep the government in power. The way in which culture, personal issues, and politics got intertwined is shown as a key trait of student mobilization, clarifying the broader, varied influence that the protest exerted on the Spanish society as a whole. The specific nature of student politics under a dictatorship are also tackled, considering its consequences for facing the challenge posed by Franco’s death. By then, the student movement had became completely subsidiary to left-wing parties and therefore got beheaded as they set mobilization aside to increasingly focus on high politics. As a result, the student movement itself faded out during the central years of the transition. Nevertheless, though it left the scene just before the constitutional process started, it had previously sown many of the seeds that made change possible.How to reference this articleRodríguez Tejada, S. (2015). The anti-Franco student movement’s contribution to the return of democracy in Spain. Espacio, Tiempo y Educación, 2(2), 77-106.