The Manifesto of the 121 (french: Manifeste des 121, full title: ''Déclaration sur le droit à l’insoumission dans la guerre d’Algérie'' or ''Declaration on the right of insubordination in the Algerian War'') was an open letter signed by 121

intellectual An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society, and who proposes solutions for the normative problems of society. Coming from the world of culture, either as a creator or a ...

s and published on 6 September 1960 in the magazine ''Vérité-Liberté''. It called on the French government, then headed by the

Gaullist Gaullism (french: link=no, Gaullisme) is a French political stance based on the thought and action of World War II French Resistance leader Charles de Gaulle, who would become the founding President of the Fifth French Republic. De Gaulle with ...

Michel Debré Michel Jean-Pierre Debré (; 15 January 1912 – 2 August 1996) was the first Prime Minister of the French Fifth Republic. He is considered the "father" of the current Constitution of France. He served under President Charles de Gaulle from 195 ...

, and

public opinion Public opinion is the collective opinion on a specific topic or voting intention relevant to a society. It is the people's views on matters affecting them. Etymology The term "public opinion" was derived from the French ', which was first use ...

to recognise the Algerian War as a legitimate struggle for independence, denouncing the use of torture by the French army, and calling for French conscientious objectors to the conflict to be respected by the authorities. The Declaration was drafted by

Dionys Mascolo Dionys Mascolo (11 February 1916 - 20 August 1997) was a French literary editor, resistance fighter, left-wing political activist, author, and former husband of Marguerite Duras. Life and work Born into a family of Italian immigrants, Mascolo ...

Maurice Blanchot Maurice Blanchot (; ; 22 September 1907 – 20 February 2003) was a French writer, philosopher and literary theorist. His work, exploring a philosophy of death alongside poetic theories of meaning and sense, bore significant influence on pos ...

and Jean Schuster. It stated that the cause of the Algerians was the cause of all free men, and that the struggle was striking a decisive blow to the cause of

colonialism Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colony, colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose the ...

. The vast majority of the signatories belonged to the

French Left The Left in France (french: gauche française) was represented at the beginning of the 20th century by two main political parties, namely the Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party and the French Section of the Workers' Internatio ...

. The signatories included figures from a variety of political and cultural movements, such as

Marxism Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialectical ...

existentialism Existentialism ( ) is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence and centers on human thinking, feeling, and acting. Existentialist thinkers frequently explore issues related to the meaning, purpose, and valu ...

, and a number of figures associated with the Nouveau Roman and New Wave literary and cinematic trends.

List of signatories

Arthur Adamov Arthur Adamov (23 August 1908 – 15 March 1970) was a playwright, one of the foremost exponents of the Theatre of the Absurd. Early life Adamov (originally Adamian) was born in Kislovodsk in the Terek Oblast of the Russian Empire to a wealthy ...

, writer *

Robert Antelme Robert Antelme (5 January 1917, Sartène, Corse-du-Sud – 26 October 1990) was a French writer. During the Second World War he was involved in the French Resistance and deported. In 1939 he married Marguerite Duras. Their child died at birth in 1 ...

, writer and former deportee in the Buchenwald concentration camp * Georges Auclair, journalist * Jean Baby, historian * Hélène Balfet * Marc Barbut *

Robert Barrat Robert Harriot Barrat (July 10, 1891 – January 7, 1970) was an American stage, motion picture, and television character actor. Early years Barratt was born on July 10, 1891, in New York City and was educated in the public schools there. He ...

* Simone de Beauvoir, philosopher and feminist * Jean-Louis Bedouin * Marc Beigbeder, philosopher and journalist (close to the personalists) * Robert Benayoun, film-maker and film critic * Michèle Bernstein, situationist *

, writer *

Roger Blin Roger Blin (Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, 22 March 1907 – Évecquemont, France, 21 January 1984) was a French actor and director. He staged world premieres of Samuel Beckett's '' Waiting for Godot'' in 1953 and ''Endgame'' in 1957.C. J. Ackerle ...

, actor and dramaturgist * Arsène Bonnefous-Murat * Geneviève Bonnefoi * Raymond Borde * Jean-Louis Bory, writer, journalist and film critic * Jacques-Laurent Bost, journalist * Pierre Boulez, composer * Vincent Bounoure * André Breton, surrealist * Guy Cabanel * Georges Condominas, anthropologist * Alain Cuny, actor * Jean Czarnecki * Jean Dalsace * Adrien Dax * Hubert Damisch, philosopher * Guy Debord, situationist * Bernard Dort * Jean Douassot * Simone Dreyfus *

Marguerite Duras Marguerite Germaine Marie Donnadieu (, 4 April 1914 – 3 March 1996), known as Marguerite Duras (), was a French novelist, playwright, screenwriter, essayist, and experimental filmmaker. Her script for the film '' Hiroshima mon amour'' (1959) e ...

, writer * Yves Ellouet * Dominique Eluard *

Charles Estienne Charles Estienne (; 1504–1564), known as Carolus Stephanus in Latin and Charles Stephens in English, was an early exponent of the science of anatomy in France. Charles was a younger brother of Robert Estienne I, the famous printer, and son to ...

Louis-René des Forêts Louis-René des Forêts (January 28, 1918 – December 31, 2001) was a French writer. Life Des Forêts's only novel, ''The Beggars'' (''Les Mendiants'') was published by Éditions Gallimard in 1943.The rest of his works include shorter narrative ...

, writer * Théodore Fraenkel * André Frénaud, poet * Jacques Gernet, sinologist *

Louis Gernet Louis Gernet (28 November 1882 – 29 January 1962) was a French philologist and sociologist. Life A student at the École Normale Supérieure (class of 1902), he received a licentiate in law and agrégation in grammar. In 1917, supported by ...

, philologist and sociologist * Edouard Glissant, writer * Anne Guérin * Daniel Guérin, historian * Jacques Howlett * Édouard Jaguer, poet and art critic * Pierre Jaouen * Gérard Jarlot *

Robert Jaulin Robert Jaulin (7 March 1928, Le Cannet, Alpes-Maritimes – 22 November 1996, Grosrouvre) was a French ethnologist. After several journeys to Chad, between 1954 and 1959, among the Sara people, he published in 1967 ''La Mort Sara'' (The Sara ...

, ethnologist * Alain Joubert * Henri Krea * Robert Lagarde * Monique Lange *

Claude Lanzmann Claude Lanzmann (; 27 November 1925 – 5 July 2018) was a French filmmaker known for the Holocaust documentary film '' Shoah'' (1985). Early life Lanzmann was born on 27 November 1925 in Paris, France, the son of Paulette () and Armand Lanzmann. ...

, film-maker *

Robert Lapoujade The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, painter and film maker *

Henri Lefebvre Henri Lefebvre ( , ; 16 June 1901 – 29 June 1991) was a French Marxist philosopher and sociologist, best known for pioneering the critique of everyday life, for introducing the concepts of the right to the city and the production of s ...

, sociologist * Gérard Legrand *

Michel Leiris Julien Michel Leiris (; 20 April 1901 in Paris – 30 September 1990 in Saint-Hilaire, Essonne) was a French surrealist writer and ethnographer. Part of the Surrealist group in Paris, Leiris became a key member of the College of Sociology with ...

, writer and ethnologist * Paul Lévy, mathematician *

Jérôme Lindon Jerome (c.347–420) was a priest, confessor, theologian and historian from Dalmatia. Jerome may also refer to: People Given name * Jerome (given name), a masculine name of Greek origin, with a list of people so named * Saint Jerome (disambiguat ...

, publisher of ''

Les Éditions de Minuit Les Éditions de Minuit (, ''Midnight Press'') is a French publishing house. It was founded in 1941, during the French Resistance of World War II, and is still publishing books today. History Les Éditions de Minuit was founded by writer and i ...

'' *

Eric Losfeld The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...

* Robert Louzon *

Olivier de Magny Olivier is the French form of the given name Oliver. It may refer to: * Olivier (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Olivier (surname), a list of people * Château Olivier, a Bordeaux winery *Olivier, Louisiana, a rural popul ...

, poet * Florence Malraux

* André Mandouze, academic *

Maud Mannoni Maud Mannoni (; born Magdalena Van der Spoel; 23 October 1923 – 15 March 1998) was a French psychoanalyst of Belgian origin, who married Octave Mannoni and became a major figure of the Lacanian movement. Life She was born as Magdalena Van der ...

, psycho-analyst *

Jean Martin Jean Martin (6 March 1922 – 2 February 2009Jean Martin
''The Guardian'', 12 February 2009

, actor * Renée Marcel-Martinet * Jean-Daniel Martinet * Andrée Marty-Capgras *

, writer * François Maspero, editor of Maspero Ed. *

André Masson André-Aimé-René Masson (4 January 1896 – 28 October 1987) was a French artist. Biography Masson was born in Balagny-sur-Thérain, Oise, but when he was eight his father's work took the family first briefly to Lille and then to Brussel ...

, painter *

Pierre de Massot Pierre de Massot (April 10 1900, Lyon – 3 January 1969, Paris) was a French writer associated with the Dada and surrealist movements. Biography He was born as the sixth child of the Count and Countess of Massot de Lafond. Massot attended the ...

, writer and journalist * Jean-Jacques Mayoux * Jehan Mayoux *

Théodore Monod Théodore André Monod (9 April 1902 – 22 November 2000) was a French naturalist, humanist, scholar and explorer. Exploration Early in his career, Monod was made professor at the ''Muséum national d'histoire naturelle'' and founded the '' Inst ...

, naturalist and explorer * Marie Moscovici * Georges Mounin * Maurice Nadeau, publisher * Georges Navel *

Claude Ollier Claude Ollier (; 17 December 1922 – 18 October 2014) was a French writer closely associated with the nouveau roman literary movement. Born in Paris, he was the first winner of the Prix Médicis The Prix Médicis is a French literary award gi ...

, writer (Nouveau Roman) * Hélène Parmelin, writer, journalist and art critic * José Pierre, writer * Marcel Péju *

André Pieyre de Mandiargues André Pieyre de Mandiargues (14 March 1909 – 13 December 1991) was a French writer born in Paris. He became an associate of the Surrealists and married the Italian painter Bona Tibertelli de Pisis (a niece of the Italian metaphysical pai ...

, writer * Edouard Pignon, painter * Bernard Pingaud * Maurice Pons, writer * Jean-Bertrand Pontalis, philosopher and psychoanalyst * Jean Pouillon, ethnologist * Madeleine Rebérioux, historian * Denise René, art gallerist *

Alain Resnais Alain Resnais (; 3 June 19221 March 2014) was a French film director and screenwriter whose career extended over more than six decades. After training as a film editor in the mid-1940s, he went on to direct a number of short films which included ...

, film-maker * Jean-François Revel, journalist * Paul Revel *

Alain Robbe-Grillet Alain Robbe-Grillet (; 18 August 1922 – 18 February 2008) was a French writer and filmmaker. He was one of the figures most associated with the '' Nouveau Roman'' (new novel) trend of the 1960s, along with Nathalie Sarraute, Michel Butor and ...

, writer (Nouveau Roman) * Christiane Rochefort, writer * Jacques-Francis Rolland * Alfred Rosmer, trade-unionist * Gilbert Rouget, ethnomusicologist * Claude Roy, writer *

Françoise Sagan Françoise Sagan (born Françoise Delphine Quoirez; 21 June 1935 – 24 September 2004) was a French playwright, novelist, and screenwriter. Sagan was known for works with strong romantic themes involving wealthy and disillusioned bourgeois chara ...

, writer * Marc Saint-Saëns, tapestrist *

Nathalie Sarraute Nathalie Sarraute (; born Natalia Ilinichna Tcherniak ( rus, Ната́лья Ильи́нична Черня́к); – 19 October 1999) was a French writer and lawyer. Personal life Sarraute was born in Ivanovo-Voznesensk (now Ivanovo), 300&n ...

, writer *

Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and lit ...

, philosopher * Renée Saurel *

Claude Sautet Claude Sautet (23 February 1924 – 22 July 2000) was a French film director and screenwriter. He was a chronicler of post-war French society. He made a total of five films with his favorite actress Romy Schneider. Biography Born in Montrou ...

, scenarist and film-maker *

Catherine Sauvage Catherine Sauvage (26 May 1929 – 20 March 1998) was a French singer and actress. Early life Born Marcelle Jeanine Saunier in Nancy, France, she moved with her family in 1940 to the Free Zone in Annecy. After high school, she turned to the t ...

, singer and actress *

Laurent Schwartz Laurent-Moïse Schwartz (; 5 March 1915 – 4 July 2002) was a French mathematician. He pioneered the theory of distributions, which gives a well-defined meaning to objects such as the Dirac delta function. He was awarded the Fields Medal in ...

, mathematician * Jean Schuster * Robert Scipion, journalist and writer * Louis Seguin, engineer and industrialist * Geneviève Serreau, actress *

Simone Signoret Simone Signoret (; born Simone Henriette Charlotte Kaminker; 25 March 1921 – 30 September 1985) was a French actress. She received various accolades, including an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, a César Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a ...

, actress * Jean-Claude Silbermann, painter and writer *

Claude Simon Claude Simon (; 10 October 1913 – 6 July 2005) was a French novelist, and was awarded the 1985 Nobel Prize in Literature. Biography Claude Simon was born in Tananarive on the isle of Madagascar. His parents were French, his father being a ...

, writer * René de Solier * D. de la Souchère * Jean Thiercelin * François Truffaut, film-maker * René Tzanck * Vercors, writer * Jean-Pierre Vernant, historian *

Pierre Vidal-Naquet Pierre Emmanuel Vidal-Naquet (; 23 July 1930 – 29 July 2006) was a French historian who began teaching at the '' École des hautes études en sciences sociales'' (EHESS) in 1969. Vidal-Naquet was a specialist in the study of Ancient Greece, bu ...

, historian * J.-P. Vielfaure * Claude Viseux, painter and sculptor * Ylipe * René Zazzo, psychologist

References

External links

The full text of the declaration and a full list of signatories
{{in lang, fr Political history of France Political manifestos Algerian War 1960 in France 1960 in politics Works originally published in French magazines 1960 documents

List of signatories

See also

References

External links