Thousands of Students Protest at University in Belgrade

An outbreak of violence occurred on the night of June 2nd, 1968.  Students who had been locked out of a popular concert venue protested by breaking the windows and doors of the venue and the police responded with a violent crackdown.  Subsequently, the students retreated to their dorms and organized into a large protest movement overnight.

On the morning of June 3rd, a neighborhood student action committee was formed. It called for a demonstration against police violence in the city center in front of parliament. Several thousand students took part in the demonstration, which was brutally attacked by the police. High-ranking politicians tried to calm the situation down, but failed. In the afternoon about 10,000 students then occupied all Faculties of Belgrade University, proclaiming a strike and the “Red University Karl Marx.” The students used loudspeakers to address people in the streets: “We want action – enough with words!”

Sources:

On this day in history: Belgrade student revolt, 1968, by Kevin Grieves, Modern Historian (June 2nd, 2010).

Yugoslav students occupy University of Belgrade for democracy and human rights, 1968, by Sarah Gonzales, Global Nonviolent Action Database, Case Studies, Swarthmore College (Feb 17th 2013)