A student movement at the National High School of Leiria after April 25, 1974, recalls the school environment following the revolution at what is now Francisco Rodrigues Lobo Secondary School.
Developed from the personal collection of Maria José Costa, a former student from the PREC era, the exhibition includes 26 ninth-grade students from the Marrazes Basic School 2/3.
“These documents showcase the entire student movement of the time. We are talking about a context of profound social and political renewal in Portugal,” explained the technical director of the School Museum, Rita Brites.
She noted, “It is fascinating that Maria José Costa preserved these pamphlets for over 50 years.”
“Some of these documents are quite significant because, alongside the political aspects, they encompass the social revolution, the workers’ struggles, the student-worker experience…”
The documentation, preserved by 66-year-old Maria José Costa, arrived at the School Museum after she found it in a box in the attic of her village home.
“These were communiqués, brochures, pamphlets, calls for RGAs [General Student Meetings] and strikes, election lists for student associations, all made using stencils during the PREC [Ongoing Revolutionary Process] period.”
Prior to donating the collection, “there was a duty to share this heritage with the city of Leiria.”
“We lived through the greatest adventure of our lives at that time. We emerged from an era when everything was forbidden,” recalled Margarida Cabrita Franco, a classmate of Maria José Costa, who also participated in the exhibition’s production.
She, who once “was called to the vice-principal’s office to lower the hem of her smock,” suddenly felt that era had ended.
“And when it happens suddenly, it’s always a torrent. For us, utopia was possible. We believed: ‘What we’re going to do will change the world.’ We must recognize, whether for better or worse, what we did changed education from that point forward.”
Both participated in purges, opposed exams, and their mobilization was “not for chaos but for planning, to change things.”
Parties were, naturally, involved in the school struggles.
“There were about 14 parties, and student association lists were always linked to a party,” remembered Maria José Costa.
However, “there was tremendous awareness of the actions being taken, and it didn’t prevent us from completing our courses,” emphasized Margarida Cabrita Franco.
This era is what the School Museum commemorates, engaging current students in this chapter of Portuguese history.
Fábio Fernandez, a 14-year-old student from class 9-A at the Marrazes school, contributed to the exhibition.
“We are very grateful to these people for having carried out the revolution that granted us the rights we have today. Since we have them, we should strive to improve what needs improvement,” he stated.
According to the student, discussions with the former high school students showed them that “perhaps what exists now isn’t as bad as it seems.”
Encouraged to revive the spirit of 50 years ago, the students crafted demands for the Marrazes school.
“We often spend money on things we don’t use, instead of solving a problem: some students feel uncomfortable, and I would even say they are afraid, to go to the bathrooms. They haven’t been renovated in years,” noted Fábio Fernandez, highlighting the main concern.
Regardless of the exhibition’s quality, the process itself is significant, emphasized Margarida Cabrita Franco.
“The journey was crucial, and the path from back then to now has been disappointing. But as long as there’s a road to walk, everything is a path.”
For Maria José Costa, the School Museum’s initiative helps “relive the spirit of April 25.”
