Futures in the Making: the Student-led Movement in Serbia
Valjevo (“Children in us know…”)
In this post, two UCUE members look at what has galvanised the anti-authoritarian protests in Serbia led by students, and explore their implications for the global conjuncture, as well as for local concerns. They point to collective self-organisation as a critical element in the formation and future of the movement.
By I. Milojević and N. Pantić
Photos by Gavrilo Andrić
“At a time when resignation to the most brutal and cynical forms of domination is almost ubiquitous in the West, it is possible to refuse oppression and rebel...The movement of students and youth in Serbia reminds us that we cannot separate the goal and the means, and that democracy is not an external goal but a practice – the very life of the movement. In that, this movement is an exemplary model for us.” Jacques Rancière[i]
Local movement, global echoes
The global resurgence of authoritarianism is reshaping political landscapes and profoundly affecting how young people imagine and seek to create their futures. Against this backdrop of intensifying attacks on academic freedoms and institutions, the student-led upraising in Serbia is an example of young people’s outcry for justice and democratic values. It has rekindled a sense of hope among many citizens who had thought there was no possibility of a different, more just future.
Based on a forthcoming article[ii] in the Journal of Future Studies, we present a snapshot of a student-led movement, which, rooted in its local realities, speaks to wider global shifts in the social and political order. It illustrates a case of organising against authoritarianism at a time when our universities are under threat in many places. As in the US, Hungary, India, Turkey and elsewhere, student activism in Serbia has been met with violence and legal repercussions for academic staff and institutions – signalling an erosion of the university as a space for critical debate and dissent, but also the role of campuses as key battlegrounds for democratic values, public knowledge, and youth agency.
In Serbia, these dynamics are compounded by a legacy of authoritarian governance and deep political polarisation. Against this trend, the student-led movement demonstrates a reassertion of collective agency, while offering an opportunity to learn from a moment in which young people actively engage in democratic future-making as political, cultural, and social practice – anchored in the present, informed by the past, to transform oppression into spaces of possibility.[iii]
What do students want?
“We are here to fight for our political lives and country … for freedom … freedom this government violates on a daily basis.” (Student); “Our students want the institutions to do their proper job. These are our youth, our students, our future.” (Student supporter)[iv]
Student-led protests in Serbia were catalysed by the collapse of a railway station canopy in November 2024, which killed 16 people and seriously injured another. The incident is widely regarded as “the straw that broke the camel’s back”: it was the latest in a string of deadly events ranging from school and mass shootings to more systemic forms of oppression such as the privatisation of public resources, endemic corruption, and state control of media. Protesters argue that Serbia is a “captured state” in which “regulatory institutions, media networks, and patronage systems all serve the ruling [party] Srpska Napredna Stranka, SNS”.
While the early protests took the form of spontaneous memorials — vows not to forget the victims and calling for accountability — in December 2024, they quickly turned into blockades of public universities, following the violent attacks of SNS party members on peaceful protesters, and even the use of a sonic weapon during one of the largest gatherings in Belgrade, an allegation the government continues to deny. Other incidents have included protestors being injured by vehicles, as well as direct physical assaults involving batons, shoving, and other forms of intimidation. The protests have since expanded into a nationwide movement against corruption and authoritarianism, and most recently spreading civil disobedience in the form of mobile road blockades.
Nonetheless, students and educational institutions remain at the centre of the movement and have been met with various reprisals – from verbal threats and withheld salaries, to legal reforms aimed at undermining university autonomy. In response, some universities have resumed teaching online (boycotted by most students), due to internal or external pressure, or a combination of both.
The student protests initially centred on four key demands: 1) the publication of all documentation relating to the reconstruction of the railway station; 2) the dismissal of charges against the students, activists, and citizens arrested or detained during protests; 3) the filing of criminal charges against all individuals who attacked students, professors, and citizens; and 4) a 20% increase in the budget allocated to university faculties. More recently, students have called for early parliamentary elections, arguing that the current government is either unwilling or unable to meet their core demands.
A desired vision for the future has been voiced on multiple occasions. For example, during a protest in the city of Niš, students publicly read the “Student Edict”, which outlined their aspirations concerning freedom, the state, justice, youth, dignity, knowledge, solidarity, and the future.
Over several months student protests featured marches, blockades, and demonstrations that, while sparked by a specific tragedy, reflect broader grievances and frustrations with corruption, institutional abuse, and the erosion of democratic principles that united students, professors and various social groups. Students have consistently made efforts to transcend long-standing social and political divisions and maintain unity around the shared goal of combatting corruption, defending democratic rights, and promoting the rule of law as the foundation of freedom. A striking example of this solidarity occurred during a 14-day rally in front of the National Broadcast Service (RTS), when Muslim students from Novi Pazar travelled to Belgrade to relieve their peers who were celebrating the Easter holiday. The rally featured a powerful speech by a war veteran who assured the students’ parents: “You can rest easy – there are no more ‘our’ and ‘their’ children” - a significant shift in the post-conflict discourse since the 1990s – possibly through intergenerational transmission of values from a formerly multicultural state towards a renewed unity in shared civic values.
Photo: In front of the National Broadcast Service (RTS)
Past resonance: freedom-loving people
As every vision of the future rests on a particular interpretation of the past, the student protests in Serbia have engaged in a nuanced negotiation of historical narratives. As in all societies, there are multiple pasts from which to draw. A blend of narratives has been observed during the protests: on one hand, those shaped over the past thirty years by the rise of ethnic nationalism; and on the other, multicultural narratives, more aligned with the Yugoslav concept of “brotherhood and unity”.
Students have been navigating this terrain with some notably symbolic interventions. For instance, while EU flags have been conspicuously absent in these protests, students frequently articulate values consistent with EU principles such as rule of law and democracy – while wrapping themselves in the Serbian national flag, a symbol associated with anti-EU ethnic nationalism in the recent past. This juxtaposition has been seen by some as a reclaiming of national symbols in service of a renewed civic vision by evoking national pride to support a pluralistic, lawful, and democratic society.
Like other nations, the people of Serbia pride themselves on being a “freedom-loving people” – slobodarski narod. Historically, this self-image has been invoked to describe the desire for freedom and resistance against oppression, for example during the rule of Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian Empires, or occupation by Nazi Germany. Despite the enduring slobodarski narod narrative, Serbian citizens continue to experience restrictions on their freedoms under autocratic rule.
The path Is the way
A crucial feature of the movement is its refusal to create centralised leadership that could become a target for state repression or co-optation. They do not have a single leader but operate as a collective. Their spokespersons are selected during closed meetings and rotate regularly – almost every time, a different face communicates on behalf of the students. Decisions are made in plenum sessions open to all students within each faculty, where every step is voted upon. The decisions of faculty-level plenums are then coordinated at the level of the university – and across the universities.
Their principled non-violent action, focused on resolve to compel institutions to fulfil their roles, have raised public awareness of democratic processes and emboldened many to join the movement. Cross-country student marches have been met with cathartic displays of solidarity and empathy.
This stands in stark contrast to the current style of governance and draws on another historical tradition: samoupravljanje (self-management), a concept that emerged during the Yugoslav era. At that time, attempts to democratise the workplace were accompanied by participatory local governance practices. Following students’ calls these have now been revitalised in a new form – zbor – as a means of reclaiming grassroots communal assemblies.
Through participatory meetings and events, rare appearances in independent media, and highly creative use of social media, students have projected a wave of fresh energy and ideas. A noteworthy feature of the movement is its humour, lightness, and playfulness. The production of witty memes and satirical content on social media reveals not only students’ creativity but also offers insight into the kind of society they envision – one that values joy, freedom, and the ability to laugh even in struggle.
Photo: Inside blockade
Critiques, failures, and successes
Unsurprisingly the most vocal criticism of the movement has come from the government itself and others who have benefited – and continue to benefit – from the current regime. For example, directors and employees of public companies whose positions were secured through party affiliation, as well as ideological allies of the ruling party, have led a campaign framing student protestors and their supporters as “Serbia haters”, and worked persistently to discredit the movement. Numerous conspiracy theories have been circulated in the hope that one – or several – might ‘stick’.
Another source of criticism has come from those whose lives and livelihoods have been disrupted by the protests and restricted freedom of movement due to road closures, or who were unable to access institutional services because of blockades of university and government premises. Among some faculty staff, there is frustration with the financial repercussions of prolonged university closures – many have lost their only income due to government-imposed penalties.
A frequently voiced critique concerns the strategies employed by the students. While many support the movement’s goals and values, they have argued that regime change should come through electoral processes – not via protest in the streets. A further critique targets the perceived lack of a clear vision for the "day after". Detractors argue that the movement has not sufficiently articulated a concrete strategy for political transition or systemic reform.
These critiques have contributed to claims about the imminent failure of the movement – despite its growth. As with all social movements, there are ebbs and flows, and many people are weary from repeated attempts to transform society, only to encounter entrenched resistance, backlash, or regression. One notable example of such backlash is the government’s proposal of a new law that would further undermine the autonomy of state universities.
Despite these challenges, there have been important successes. The movement has succeeded in maintaining political pressure on the regime, pushing for greater accountability, even while formally remaining outside party politics. The protests have resulted in marginal yet symbolically significant changes – such as the resignations of the Minister of Construction and the Prime Minister. More recently in May 2025, six political activists were released from detention into house arrest as a direct result of protest pressure. In response to one of the students’ demands – the Serbian Parliament agreed to restart the selection process for members of the Regulatory Body for Electronic Media (REM) – leading students to end the 14-day blockade of the National Broadcast Service.
Most substantively, students have sparked a wave of civic participation across Serbia, cutting across age, class, and profession. The movement has been joined by hundreds of thousands of citizens from all generations and social groups: university professors and other educators, high school pupils who closed their schools for months, unpaid teachers, pensioners, agricultural workers, lawyers, engineers, actors and other cultural workers. Bikers and army veterans came to the streets to defend students against regime-funded thugs sent to disrupt peaceful gatherings in Belgrade and throughout the country. Hundreds of taxi drivers mobilised to bring student protestors back to their hometowns following national rallies held in every university centre in Serbia.
Peaceful vigils for victims and protests took place in towns and villages across the country, for example the “student in every village” campaign offered what for many was the only break in regime-controlled media coverage. In doing so, the movement has managed to shift public opinion in its favour – even amidst smear campaigns against the academic elite, limited access to free media, and widespread misinformation in state-aligned media.
Photo: “Students in every village“ campaign
Recently, the students have cycled to Strasbourg and ran to Brussels to ensure their voices are heard within European institutions. The Serbian diaspora has also staged demonstrations and other activities overseas. More than 4,500 members of the international academic community have expressed support, as have members of the European Parliament.
Future scenarios
In the forthcoming article[v] we discuss four trajectories for the movement’s future: 1) marginal or cosmetic changes, while the structural problems targeted by the movement remain fundamentally unchanged; 2) more repressive measures and state violence by the ruling party; 3) a deepening of political polarisation and the risks of spreading intergroup violence, and 4) the optimistic scenario, involving new elections and a peaceful transfer of power.
Social change is never easy, nor painless – and rarely immediate. Yet the student movement in Serbia has shown that meaningful transformation does not require perfection or instant results. Its approach may not yield rapid or sweeping change, but it offers a clear path forward – grounded in persistence, imagination, and the refusal to remain silent in the face of autocracy and corruption. It has already achieved an irreversible change in showing the liberatory power of collective self-organisation in the face of authoritarianism. It has awakened empathy and solidarity in a society long traumatised by conflict, and has set a new generation on a path that no longer tolerates silence or fear in the face of injustice. In that, the seeds of a different future have already been sown.
is a Senior Lecturer in Futures at the University of Edinburgh. She works at the Edinburgh Futures Institute as a researcher and an educator with the background in sociology, gender, peace and futures studies. https://www.de.ed.ac.uk/people/dr-ivana-milojevic
is a Professor in Educational Change and Diversity at the University of Edinburgh. Her interests span education, citizenship and migration, and most recently focus on educators' collaboration and agency for social change.
Endnotes
[i] Extract from response to students "Our Students are Self-Educating Wonderfully: a Dispatch from the Serbian Uprising" Verso Books Blog with PhD in One Night collective and samizdat Edicija Jugoslavija.
[ii] Milojević I. & Pantić, N. (forthcoming). Contesting Authoritarianism: The Role of Youth-Led Movements in Shaping Futures in Serbia, The Journal of Futures Studies.
[iii] Appadurai, A. (2013). The future as cultural fact: Essays on the global condition. Verso Books.
[iv] Ingrid Gercama (30 January 2025, The Guardian) “’We are done with corruption’: how the students of Serbia rose up against the system.” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/30/we-are-done-with-corruption-how-the-students-of-serbia-rose-up-against-the-system
[v] Milojević I. & Pantić, N. (forthcoming). Contesting Authoritarianism: The Role of Youth-Led Movements in Shaping Futures in Serbia, The Journal of Futures Studies.
