On July 20th, 2019, a Pride parade in the city of Bialystok, Poland turned violent when far-right groups clashed with LGBTQ activists. However, as the parade began, counter-protesters began to hurl insults and objects at the marchers, including rocks, bottles, and firecrackers. Some counter-protesters even attempted to break through police barriers to physically attack the parade participants. The violence continued to escalate throughout the day, with police using tear gas and water cannons to...
The New Nationalism at the Heart of Europe is a large photo and video-art project, in which Tomáš Rafa maps the public manifestations of nationalism, extreme right, racism and lack of tolerance in different countries. Since 2009, the artist documents meetings of radical and revolutionary groups, but also the anti-government and anti-extremist demonstrations, marches and supporting events for the rights of the minorities or clashes of anti-Fascists with supporters of ultra right movements. read more
There are some issues in which, in contrast to others, most of the former SFR Yugoslavia countries are not falling behind compared to other countries of Europe. One of those issues is, of course, the new nationalism which is widespread over the whole Europe and its frequency is dependant on the country and the region in which it is manifested.As in other European post-socialist countries, right-wing politics was the most usual orientation of the new governments, which in the case of SFRY was...
On 10 September 2021, during the 137th monthly commemoration of the Smolensk air disaster, activists from Lotna Brygada Opozycji (LBO) carried out a peaceful artistic intervention on Piłsudski Square in Warsaw. Next to the Pomnik Ofiar Tragedii Smoleńskiej (Monument to the Victims of the Smolensk Tragedy), they assembled a temporary structure made of cardboard boxes, referred to as the “Cardboard Stairs.” The installation, built from around thirty-five boxes and standing four metres high...
In the summer of 2015, the area surrounding Budapest’s Keleti Railway Station became an unexpected and harrowing epicenter of the European refugee crisis. Thousands of refugees, primarily from Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan, found themselves stranded at Keleti Station Square, transforming the area into a makeshift camp and a vivid illustration of the human toll of war and displacement. As the number of refugees arriving in Budapest surged, the Hungarian government decided to suspend all...
Ukrainian forces mobilized near Sloviansk and Kramatorsk, where separatists had seized government buildings. Despite the tense atmosphere and likelihood of conflict, the mood in eastern Ukraine remained defiant. Sloviansk, a small industrial town near the Russian border, transformed into a potential battleground. Armed pro-Russia activists occupied a police station and were prepared to face Ukrainian forces. The situation escalated as machine-gun fire was heard and Ukrainian forces clashed with...
On February 13th, 2013, more than 10,000 anti-fascist activists formed a human chain in downtown Dresden to protest against neo-Nazi marches on the 68th anniversary of the WWII bombing that destroyed the city. The demonstration marked a symbolic gesture against the right-wing extremist groups. Although thousands of participants formed a human chain, no clashes were reported with the participants of the planned parallel neo-Nazi rally. Approximately 3,000 police had been deployed earlier in the...
A pre-election rally organized by far-right politician Marián Kotleba and members of his People’s Party Our Slovakia (ĽSNS) in Žilina escalated into violence on Saturday, July 11, 2015. The event, staged under an anti-immigration banner, drew several hundred participants, including sympathizers from the extremist group VZDOR Kysuce and other regional branches of the Slovak radical right. The gathering was held in Žilina’s city center as part of a series of nationalist demonstrations that...
Legida, short for “Leipzig gegen die Islamisierung des Abendlandes” is a German right-wing populist movement that emerged as an offshoot of the more prominent Pegida movement. Legida, which is centered in the eastern city of Leipzig, was established in early 2015 and has been organizing weekly demonstrations since then. Like Pegida, Legida’s stated aim is to protest against what it sees as the Islamization of Germany and the perceived failure of the German government to...
On March 27, 2024, Kunsthalle Bratislava hosted a poignant farewell event, marking the end of its existence as an independent institution.This closure resulted from a directive by the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic to merge Kunsthalle Bratislava with the Slovak National Gallery (SNG), effective April 1, 2024. The decision to dissolve Kunsthalle Bratislava was announced in early 2024. On January 16, 2024, the institution’s director, Jen Kratochvil, resigned following the...
On November 10, 2024, the monthly Smolensk remembrance ceremony once again took place in Warsaw. Attention focused on the controversial stairs erected near the Smolensk monument, which activists described as illegal and a symbol of political manipulation. The activists reminded that the stairs were built without proper authorization from the City of Warsaw and remain subject to a court order for removal. They declared that dismantling the structure would mark “the end of the Smolensk lie,”...
Far-right protests in Ceske Budejovice against the Roma community turned violent on Saturday, 29 June 2013, resulting in eight people being injured, including two police officers. More than 100 people were detained during the clashes, and police found baseball bats, brass knuckles, gas pistols and other weapons in possession of the demonstrators. Protestors had attempted to reach neighborhoods where the Roma population was prominent, leading to confrontations with the police. Officers used tear...
19.10.2015, Trnovec, Slovenia/CroatiaAs the migration crisis in Europe continues, tensions rise between Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia over dealing with thousands of refugees stranded in the Balkans. The countries accuse each other of allowing migrants to cross their borders without taking responsibility. Slovenia has limited the number of refugees allowed to cross from Croatia, claiming Germany and Austria are also reducing the numbers they accept. Slovenia’s interior minister, Vesna...