Teachers in Hungary Oppose Democratic Backsliding
In response to Hungary’s growing authoritarianism and repression of public education, the Tanítanék teachers’ movement launched a bold wave of civil disobedience beginning in 2022. After several teachers were fired for striking, tens of thousands of educators, parents, and students mobilized across Budapest to reframe the crackdown not as a labor dispute but as a fight for democracy itself. Protesters formed human chains, blocked bridges, threw garbage at government effigies, and burned official warning letters sent to intimidate striking teachers. These actions served to reveal the extent of state control and intimidation under Viktor Orbán’s regime, especially in schools, which had become flashpoints in Hungary’s broader democratic backsliding.
The teachers’ coalition, unified under the slogan “We are not afraid,” redeemed their cause by centering the voices of students and families and by making clear their demands: not just better pay, but the right to speak, teach, and live freely. Rather than depending on hollow legal avenues, the movement redirected energy into street-level demonstrations and digital infrastructure, including a media portal and mailing list of over 90,000 supporters. Despite arrests and repression, the movement’s sustained resistance shows how professional associations can expose autocratic tactics and challenge political violence through collective action, creativity, and moral clarity.
Photo Credit: Beethoven Straße 3, 'Streiks sind ein Grundrecht', 2022 Németvölgy. Globetrotter19, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.