Youth Uprisings Topple Serbian Leader and Spread Across Continental Capitals

Student-led demonstrations have erupted across Europe, challenging established political orders and demanding economic reforms.

In Serbia, these protests concluded with the election defeat of long-time leader Aleksandar Vucic. The movement against him lasted nearly two years and focused on corruption and authoritarian governance.

Stasa Piletic, a student protester, said the group now feels a sense of relief and freedom. She stated, "I feel that we finally moved from protests to responsibility."

In France, the unrest has resulted in physical damage to retail infrastructure. Thousands of shops have been damaged or looted in recent weeks. Police responded with stun grenades and water cannons.

Maya Gourdel, a 19-year-old student in Brussels, wrote the slogan "If we burn, you burn with us!" on protest signs. This phrase originates from the film "The Hunger Games" and has become a common symbol for youth movements worldwide.

Bilal Narjissi, a 17-year-old student in a suburb north of Paris, cited staff shortages and poor facilities as primary grievances. He noted that rats were present in his school and that students were evacuated last year when a roof collapsed in the courtyard. He said nobody was hurt during that incident.

Chiara, a 21-year-old student in Milan, described Italian schools as having crumbling buildings and too few teachers. She added that graduates often accept underpaid jobs and live in expensive housing far from their home cities.

A 2025 European Union survey found that 40% of people aged 16 to 30 worry about rising prices and the cost of living. In 2025, 92.7 million EU residents were at risk of poverty or social exclusion. The highest risk group was those aged 18 to 24, at 26.3%. This compared with 18.8% for adults aged 65 or over.

The OFCE think tank reported that people over 60 comprise a quarter of France's population but own 60% of its wealth. French pensions are the largest public expense and are on track to reach 14% of economic output. A French government report in October stated that pension spending rose by 2.5 percentage points of GDP between 2000 and 2023. During the same period, education spending fell by 0.5 points. The report also noted that 32% of the education ministry's budget goes toward pensions.

Gourdel said peaceful efforts in Belgium went unnoticed until unrest escalated. She said, "It's only when people started to burn trash or that kind of stuff that the media and cameras started showing us."

Demonstrations are planned in Germany this weekend over cost of living, inequality, war, and school conditions. In Albania, student-led protests against Prime Minister Edi Rama's government have taken over Tirana and other cities.

Xyke Kurti, an Albanian architecture student, said Rama spent 130 days not listening to students. He noted that many young Albanians view their future as being outside the country. Luka Stojakovic, a protester in Serbia, said the students now face the task of governing without prior experience. He dismissed concerns about their inexperience by saying, "We have seen where people with political experience have brought us."