In 1980, the Association may have been viewed as a student equivalent of Solidarity, as it was created following the strikes of the so-called Polish August 1980. It led to the gathering of young people who wished to organize themselves independently of the Communist regime. They called for democratization of Polish universities, as well as respect for the Polish patriotic traditions of fighting for independence. The NZS was an alternative to the official Polish Students' Association (ZSP), which was subordinated to the Polish United Workers' Party.