Panel of students from universities in Novi Sad, Novi Pazar, and Belgrade, and a member of a citizens' council from New Belgrade

Moderated by: 
Branislav Jakovljević, Sara Hart Kimball Professor of the Humanities, Department of Theater and Performance Studies, Stanford University
Srđan Keča, Associate Professor, Department of Art & Art History and Program Director, MFA in Documentary Film, Stanford University

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As democracy faces threats around the globe, what can young people do? In the face of this question, many feel powerless, cynical, or apathetic. This was the case in Serbia, until a unique student movement sprang up and offered a powerful and hopeful answer.

On November 1, 2024, the collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad killed 16 people, igniting public outrage as evidence pointed to systemic corruption having caused the deaths. What began as vigils for the victims rapidly transformed into the largest and most sustained protest movement in Serbia's history. At its heart are university students who have adopted a remarkable model of political organizing: horizontally structured, leaderless, yet extraordinarily disciplined. Despite having no central command, they orchestrated hundreds of massive peaceful rallies across the country, including the largest rally the country had seen, drawing more than 300,000 people to Belgrade on March 15, 2025.

A striking feature of the movement is its strategic clarity. Rather than fracturing over traditionally divisive political issues, students built a broad, heterogeneous coalition united around simple demands: the restoration of the rule of law and democratic institutions. This approach has earned them the support of the majority of the population, a feat that has eluded opposition parties amid Serbia's captured media landscape. Professors, high school pupils, teachers, lawyers, farmers, war veterans and countless ordinary citizens all stepped up to support this movement, in the process rebuilding the consensus in Serbian society.

After months of protests failed to secure accountability from the government, the students decided to take their movement to the ballot box. Rather than nominating themselves, they are assembling an electoral list of experts and professionals for the parliamentary elections they are demanding. In doing so, they have transformed from a protest movement into a major political force unlike anything currently operating in global politics.

Join us for a conversation with students and professors from Serbia's protest movement as they share insights from this frontline of democratic renewal.

Co-sponsored by:
Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies (CREEES)
Stanford Democracy Day
Democracy Action Lab (CDDRL)