When you imagine a Korean freedom fighter, what kind of person comes to mind? The people that participated in the Korean independence movement came from various backgrounds and walks of life. Independence activists arose from all societal classes. These classes ultimately came together and strengthened Korea’s national consciousness. According to The National Independence Hall of Korea, about 2 million Korean citizens participated in the March 1st Movement of 1919. Among all the classes that were involved in this historic movement, the student class played a dominant role in organizing and gathering huge numbers for the protest.
These students actively worked with the 33 National Representatives, who wrote the Korean Declaration of Independence, to lead an international Korean resistance movement. By the start of the 19th century, middle schools and high schools within the peninsula began forming inter-school alliances. These alliances strengthened the Korean national consciousness among students and heavily influenced early independence activism within the peninsula. Because of the established organization between the student alliances and the 33 National Representatives, the March 1st movement quickly became the largest independence movement in Korean History. The protests and activism spread from the student class to all other parts of Korean society. The organizational success of the March 1st movement greatly influenced activism culture in Korea. The student class has played a leading role in Korea’s activism or protest culture from the start of the 19th century to the present. One of the most Influential leaders of the March 1st movement was Yu Gwan-Sun. At the start of the March 1st movement, she was only 15 years old. As a child, she was introduced to the independence movement through her parents. When she entered school, she naturally joined her fellow students in independence activism. After experiencing the March 1st movement in Hanseong (modern day seoul), She became inspired by her fellow activists and the importance of the declaration of independence. She felt that she had a responsibility to spread this message of Korean Independence around the country.
On March 10, 1919, Japan implemented a forced school lockdown in an attempt to block the protests in Hanseong. Yu Gwan-Sun used this time to return to her hometown in Cheonan, where she began to prepare for a second wave of protests. During this time, she shared the Declaration of Independence with town elders and organized mass numbers in secret. On April 1st 1919, Yu Gwan-Sun led the 4.1 independence protests, which led to the spread of mansae protests throughout the peninsula. Yu Gwan-Sun is often regarded as Korea’s Joan of Arc, she passed away at 17 after two years of independence activism from prison. Because of her efforts, the message of the March 1st movement was spread throughout the country. Yu Gwan- Sun and other brave students freedom fighters became the basis of independence activism within the peninsula. Yu Gwan-Sun was an amazing independence activist, however she was also a sixteen-year-old student when she was arrested for resisting Japanese imperial rule. It is important to never forget the bravery that it took for her to make that decision. However, we can also not ignore the fact that if the Japanese occupation never happened, she could have lived a normal life as a 15-year-old student.
Written by: Kamilah Dreux
Originally from Washington D.C , Current 4th year university student, Candidate for a Bachelor of Arts in Korean Language Flagship and Korean History at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, Exchange student at Korea University and Intern at VANK (Voluntary Agency Network of Korea).