The Manifesto of the 121 (), was an open letter signed by 121 intellectuals and published on 6 September 1960 in the magazine Vérité-Liberté. It called on the French government, then headed by the Gaullist Michel Debré, and public opinion 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, Maurice Blanchot 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. The vast majority of the signatories belonged to the French Left. The signatories included figures from a variety of political and cultural movements, such as Marxism, existentialism, surrealism, and a number of figures associated with the Nouveau Roman and New Wave literary and cinematic trends.
There were later signatories to the declaration, 246 in total.
List of first signatories
Arthur Adamov, writer Robert Antelme, writer and former deportee in the Buchenwald concentration camp Georges Auclair, journalist Jean Baby, historian Hélène Balfet Marc Barbut Robert Barrat 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 Maurice Blanchot, writer Roger Blin, 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, writer Yves Ellouet Dominique Eluard Charles Estienne Louis-René des Forêts, writer Théodore Fraenkel André Frénaud, poet Jacques Gernet, sinologist Louis Gernet, 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, ethnologist Alain Joubert Henri Krea Robert Lagarde Monique Lange Claude Lanzmann, film-maker Robert Lapoujade, painter and film maker Henri Lefebvre, sociologist Gérard Legrand Michel Leiris, writer and ethnologist Paul Lévy, mathematician Jérôme Lindon, publisher of Les Éditions de Minuit Eric Losfeld Robert Louzon Olivier de Magny, poet Florence Malraux
André Mandouze, academic Maud Mannoni, psycho-analyst Jean Martin, actor Renée Marcel-Martinet Jean-Daniel Martinet Andrée Marty-Capgras Dionys Mascolo, writer François Maspero, editor of Maspero Ed. André Masson, painter Pierre de Massot, writer and journalist Jean-Jacques Mayoux Jehan Mayoux Théodore Monod, naturalist and explorer Marie Moscovici Georges Mounin Maurice Nadeau, publisher Georges Navel Claude Ollier, writer (Nouveau Roman) Hélène Parmelin, writer, journalist and art critic José Pierre, writer Marcel Péju André Pieyre de Mandiargues, writer Édouard 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, film-maker Jean-François Revel, journalist Paul Revel Alain Robbe-Grillet, writer (Nouveau Roman) Christiane Rochefort, writer Jacques-Francis Rolland Alfred Rosmer, trade-unionist Gilbert Rouget, ethnomusicologist Claude Roy, writer Françoise Sagan, writer Marc Saint-Saëns, tapestrist Nathalie Sarraute, writer Jean-Paul Sartre, philosopher Renée Saurel Claude Sautet, scenarist and film-maker Catherine Sauvage, singer and actress Laurent Schwartz, mathematician Jean Schuster Robert Scipion, journalist and writer Louis Seguin, engineer and industrialist Geneviève Serreau, actress Simone Signoret, actress Jean-Claude Silbermann, painter and writer Claude Simon, 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, historian J.-P. Vielfaure Claude Viseux, painter and sculptor Ylipe René Zazzo, psychologist
See also
Notes
References
External links The full text of the declaration and a full list of signatories