Salvador P. López

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Salvador P. Lopez (May 27, 1911–October 18, 1993), born in Currimao, Ilocos Norte, is an Ilokano writer, journalist, educator, diplomat, and statesman.

He studied at the University of the Philippines and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy in 1931 and a Master of Arts degree, also in philosophy, in 1933. From 1933 to 1936, he taught literature and journalism at the University of Manila.

In 1940, Lopez' essay "Literature and Society" won in the Commonwealth Literary Awards. This essay posited that art must have substance and that poet Jose Garcia Villa's adherence to "art for art's sake" is decadent. The essay provoked debates, the discussion centered on proletarian literature, i.e., engaged or committed literature versus the art for art’s sake literary orientation.

Lopez was the president of the University of the Philippines from 1969 to 1975. And he established a system of democratic consultation in which decisions such as promotions and appointments were made through greater participation by the faculty and administrative personnel; he also reorganized U.P. into the U.P. System. It was during his presidency that U.P. students were politically radicalized, launching mass protests against the Marcos regime, from the so-called "First Quarter Storm" in 1970 to the "Diliman commune" in 1971.