The Student Committee of Solidarity () was a student group created in Kraków in 1977 whose purpose was opposition to the Communist government in Poland.Michael H. Bernhard, "The origins of democratization in Poland: workers, intellectuals, and oppositional politics, 1976-1980", Columbia University Press, 1993, pg. 143

/ref> The committee was formed in the aftermath of the murder of

Stanisław Pyjas Stanisław Włodzimierz Pyjas (1953–1977) was a Polish student of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków, member of the anticommunist student movements. He died on 7 May 1977, in Kraków. The exact circumstances of Pyjas’ death are still a ...

, a student activist, probably killed by members of the communist Secret Services.*Studenckie Komitety Solidarności
/ref>Jarosław Szarek, OBEP Kraków, IPN, Studencki Komitet Solidarności (SKS) – 30. rocznica powstania (Student Committee of Solidarity (SKS) - Thirtieth anniversary

/ref> The funeral of Pyjas turned into a student demonstration in the streets of Kraków (later called the "Black Marching, Procession"), the largest of its kind in Kraków since the March events of 1968. In the autumn of 1977 similar committees formed in other cities;

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

and

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

, as well in

Szczecin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Poland-Germany border, German border, it is a major port, seaport, the la ...

in 1978. The student organizations were generally associated with the Komitet Obrony Robotnikóws (KOR) and carried out their activities mostly, but not exclusively, in academic settings. Where it proved possible, students associated with the committees also supported workers' organizations. The committees printed underground newspapers, organized petitions regarding living standards in student housing and demanded the replacement of communist controlled student groups by independent ones. Another purpose of the committees was to report on the kind of abuses by the communist Secret Services that had led to Pyjas' murder. In a more or less spontaneous ways, the Student Committees of Solidarity led to formation of Independent Students Unions, particularly by 1980. Many activists of the committees later, after

fall of communism in Poland Autumn, also known as fall (especially in US & Canada), is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southern Hemispher ...

, became well known public figures, among others; Bronisław Wildstein, Bogusław Sonik, Liliana Batko-Sonik, Lesław Maleszka, Róża Thun,

Ludwik Dorn Ludwik Stanisław Dorn (, 5 June 1954 – 7 April 2022) was a Polish conservative politician, who served as Deputy Prime Minister and member of Sejm elected on 5 November 2007. Biography Dorn was born Ludwik Dornbaum, to Polish-Jewish parents H ...

, Magdalena Modzelewska, Elżbieta Majewska, and Jacek RakowieckiStowarzyszenie Maj '77, "Rzecznicy SKS'u"
/ref>

References

External links

*Collection of photographs from an exposition on the 30th anniversary of formation of organizatio

1977 establishments in Poland Student societies in Poland {{Youth-org-stub