Student Protests Around the World

By Lucia Bricknell, Enock Ishimwe, Abel Tesfaye Kebede, Halil Kemal Ocak, Inessa Porte, and Reyanne Tirion (@globalhistorylab)

Introduction by Elvira Viktória Tamus (@evtamus; evt27@cam.ac.uk), Teaching Fellow at the Global History Lab and PhD Candidate at the Faculty of History, University of Cambridge

For more than three months, tens of thousands have been protesting against the Serbian government in student-led demonstrations in Novi Sad. The civilians’ demands include holding accountable those responsible for the city’s railway station canopy collapse that killed fifteen people on 1 November 2024 as well as the release of students and lecturers who were charged due to their involvement in the protests. Student voices matter and have the potential to change history – we can think about Budapest in 1956, Mexico City in 1968, Soweto in 1976, Beijing in 1989, the ‘March for our Lives’ rallies in the US in 2018, or the Global Climate Strikes worldwide in recent years.

This piece is the second in a series of essays written by students at the Sapienza University of Rome who are studying in the Global History Lab (Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities; University of Cambridge) as part of their Global Humanities degree programme.  Our team addressed the fascinating topic of student protests, a phenomenon that is relevant for societies on a global scale and still experienced very differently in the countries where the team members come from. The students’ analysis of university demonstrations also enhances our understanding of today’s political culture in various places around the world. Moreover, this essay succeeds in convincing us that ‘protests are not just an expression but also a fundament of freedom’.

Read more: Student Protests Around the World

As international students in Rome, we decided it would be an interesting idea to compare certain aspects of political culture from our home countries and Italy. We chose to take a look at student protests, the ways in which they differ, and how they define our perceptions of political conflicts and protests. We do so through the experiences of Italian, French, Ethiopian, Rwandan, Turkish, and Dutch students in Italy. All of our impressions of political protests in Rome have been vastly different, ranging from  seeing them as a natural and expected part of society to recognizing that they area privilege not universally shared. We all agree that the freedom to protest that we experience in Rome represents a fundamental right of letting our voices be heard.

In Italy, student protests have always played an important role in public discourse, and nowhere is this truer than in Rome. During the 1960s and 70s, student movements became highly active, inspired by global protests and calls for social justice. La Sapienza, the largest university in Rome, in particular, became an epicentre for demonstrations addressing issues like education reform, labour rights, and political freedom. The Sessantotto (1968) was a year of widespread protests, with Roman students demanding university modernisation, better access to education, and opposition to historical, political and academic hierarchies, often through occupazioni, or squatting in public infrastructure. For Italian students, active political participation is fundamental, regardless of age. Our Italian student’s first protest, for example, was when she was 11, with her middle school encouraging collective attendance. Later, in high school, they organised sit-ins and squats, voicing their dissent to governmental action. In Italy political activism feels natural in university, if not expected, as it is deeply intertwined with the academic upbringing.

In France, the tradition of student protests can be traced back to the fifteenth century, when strikes were held at the University of Paris to defend tax exemptions. However, it was the French Revolution of 1789 that had a profound impact on the understandings of political engagement. More recently, in the spring of 2024, students at Sciences Po and the Sorbonne, two Parisian universities, organised a series of protests in support of Gaza and the Palestinian cause. This contemporary resurgence of student-led mobilisations can be understood as a manifestation of the enduring legacy of historical events that shaped French protesting but also political culture. More importantly, it is a vital demonstration of forces: the ability, or rather the right, of the population to act and the importance of freedom of expression. A similar situation can be observed in Italy, students are becoming more and more organised, carrying out activities such as painting slogans on buildings, demonstrating in public spaces and holding protests on university campus, as we can observe at the Sapienza University of Rome.

In Ethiopia, activism is restricted, and there are few public protests. Protesting against the government or government organizations is against the law. This is partly because the monarchy, which lasted for 44 years from 1930 to 1974, was overthrown by student protests, and a communist regime took over. The communist government ruled from 1974 to 1991 before it was also overthrown by student protests. This has left a lasting fear in the government, which makes it cautious about protests. Even during the 2018 war between the regional and federal governments, people did not protest. Sometimes, the government allowed peaceful protests, but these were very controlled, usually only during elections. These protests did not give people much freedom to express their true opinions. At Sapienza by contrast, students are free to share different opinions and protest on many topics. Even if some issues seem small, the important thing is that there is a lot of freedom to exchange ideas openly.

Rwanda is an intriguing case; since the 2000s, the country has had only one president, which challenges the essence of democracy. Despite Article 34 of Rwanda’s constitution guaranteeing press freedom, most media are state-controlled. There have been virtually no protests in universities or public spaces for the last few decades. Conversely, whilst at Sapienza, our Ethiopian student has been struck by the prevalence of protests in Rome. During the Gaza conflict, ‘Free Palestine’ was scrawled across university campuses and bathrooms. Moreover, public transport strikes, known in Italian as Sciopero, are frequent. While initially these Sciopero were annoying, he came to realise that those strikes embody freedom and democracy – values that feel distant in Rwanda’s controlled environment.

In Türkiye, at the Yildiz Technical University, a protest was held due to the condition of the library, as the ceiling of the building was falling out. Students showed up wearing barrettes to bring the issue to the attention of the media. In Sapienza, in a similar fashion, our Turkish student saw a protest with students putting tents in front of the campus, protesting the inaccessibility of student dormitories. These two cases represent different issues that students face in different countries. Whilst both protests were conducted similarly, because of the distinct social and political contexts, the authorities reacted differently. In the case of Sapienza, a new dormitory for students has started to be constructed, but in Türkiye, for this case, protests need to continue for a longer period of time to succeed.

The biggest difference between the student protests in The Netherlands and Italy our Dutch student has found is the intensity of the protest. For example, when comparing student protests against ties with Israel in Rome and Amsterdam, there is a contrast in organisation, participation, and escalation. In May 2024, big protests were held at the University of Amsterdam. These protests grew into blockades and destruction and ended with excessive police violence. The protests at Sapienza that happened around the same time were smaller in scale and although they were also connected with vandalism, there was no escalation with police forces. This reflects the depth of expression and involvement of students in politics.

We have spoken about historical context, freedom, safety, and escalation in our perspectives of student protests. The conclusion we can take from these reflections is that the right to protest is a privilege not reserved for everyone equally all over the world. Although the methods or strength of protests can differ, the soul of letting our voices be heard is the same wherever we are. Students’ voices matter and protests allow us to show what we stand for. Protests are not just an expression but also a fundament of freedom.

Image: Occupazione dell’Università La Sapienza 3 febbraio 1968 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Occupazione_dell%27Universit%C3%A0_La_Sapienza_3_febbraio_1968.jpg