Issue and Opponent: Korean students living under Japanese imperial rule were frustrated by living under colonialism. For example, all residents had to participate in the singing of the Japanese National Anthem and hymns to Tennō, the Emperor; failing to do so was illegal. For example, authorities suspended any students who participated in any resistance.
Dilemma Action: On November 3, 1929, the Japanese mobilized students for the ‘Meiji Festival,’ one of the four major holidays. This day was National Foundation Day on the 3rd of October in the lunar calendar. Instead of the students celebrating Emperor Meiji’s birthday, they shouted anti-Japanese slogans such as: “Long live Joseon independence!”, “Abolish colonial slavery education!” and “Close the one-person school Gwangju Middle School!”
​​Outcomes: This action resulted in the student movement growing nationwide lasting for five months. The Gwangju Student Independence Movement was the largest student movement under Japanese colonial rule, with 1642 arrested, 582 expelled, and 2,230 indefinitely suspended. The mobilization of these students was tied to the June 10, 1926, Independence Movement. Korea would not achieve de facto independence from Japan until 1943, with Japan surrendering in 1945.