In the United States, pro-Palestinian demonstrations have become almost commonplace on university campuses since 7 October 2023. In contrast, such demonstrations have been less frequent in Europe, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe. However, this trend appears to be changing, as evidenced by pro-Palestinian students disrupting the graduation ceremony of the Central European University (CEU), which relocated from Budapest to Vienna in 2020.
According to Mandiner, the students criticized the university administration and faculty, accusing them of ‘collaborating with Israel’ and supporting a ‘genocide’ for not boycotting Israeli institutions.
At the centre of the demonstration were the gender studies students, with Mexican student Julia Gugerli Lazos delivering the ceremonial speech. Mandiner points out that Lazos describes herself as a ‘gender equality activist’ and ‘community builder’ on her LinkedIn page. In her speech, she emphasized that while they were celebrating, thousands of students were losing their lives in Gaza.
Lazos then stated that attempts to persuade the CEU leadership to take a stand against ‘the genocide perpetrated by Israel’ were in vain. She indignantly noted that the CEU has maintained its links with Israeli universities and Israeli-owned companies.
In the German-language press, there have been several articles about the anti-Israeli atmosphere at CEU. As reported by Individualista in December 2023, the Austrian Union of Jewish Students (JÖH) stated that the conditions at CEU were unbelievable. JÖH reported a hostile atmosphere towards anything connected with Israel and Zionism, writing that
CEU was demonizing the Jewish state, trivializing Hamas terror, and that Jewish students were repeatedly harassed.
In her speech, Lazos also expressed outrage that the faculty and school administration did not stand up for the students. Indeed, the CEU did not take a stand, citing freedom of expression. However, fifteen of the university’s professors issued a statement condemning Israel even before the Israeli ground offensive began in late 2023. Of these fifteen lecturers, thirteen teach gender studies and the remaining two sociology. In contrast, only three CEU professors have issued a statement in support of Israel.
Lazos ended her speech by claiming that CEU professors ‘collaborate’ with Zionist institutions. ‘History will remember, the colonized people will remember. We will also remember and we will not forgive!’ she threatened, adding that it is necessary to fight against all forms of Zionism. Lazos called on the graduates not to shake hands with the rector when they came on stage.
At the graduation ceremony, many of the gender studies students wore Palestinian scarves and carried a Palestinian flag, along with a banner reading ‘CEU Open Society = Genocidal Complicity’. This is particularly interesting, since George Soros—founder of CEU—is one of the American billionaires who
financially supported pro-Palestinian protesters on American campuses.
Interestingly, the CEU graduation ceremony was available on YouTube for a while, but the link has now been made private.
Originally, pro-Palestinian protests started in the United States and spread to Western Europe; nevertheless, they are also becoming more frequent in Central and Eastern Europe. As reported by Hungarian Conservative, in May a conference on Hamas sexual violence in Budapest was disrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters. Interestingly, most of the protesters were not Hungarian citizens.
Last weekend’s Pride parade in Budapest was not free of pro-Palestinian protests either. According to Mandiner, both Palestinian and Israeli flags were flown at the parade. However, instead of promoting reconciliation and acceptance, which are among the aims of Pride, the two groups clashed verbally, prompting the organizers to intervene.
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