Hungary
Hungary: Social Catastrophe in the Making
AntiNote: This article first appeared in December 2014 on the Böll Foundation website, with link citations that we have not reproduced. It is reprinted here with the permission of the author.
Social Catastrophe In the Making
by Bálint Misetics
It is not only constitutional democracy that Viktor Orbán’s regime treats as its enemy; the Hungarian government has also launched a forceful attack on the welfare state, with predictable consequences: rising poverty and social inequality. No pro-democratic political opposition movement can continue to ignore the immense state-induced suffering of millions of Hungarians; to succeed, we must learn to transgress class boundaries.
Tensions in Budapest
AntiNote: We invite your thoughts on this subject, especially from those of you who work in or have contact with groups struggling for social justice in Hungary. Feel free to contact us at antidote[at]riseup[dot]net.
The following is an extended excerpt of a radio interview, edited for readability.
On 1 February 2014, Chuck Mertz of This is Hell! Radio (Chicago) talked to Todd Williams, an American expatriate in Budapest, about the lead-up to contentious elections in Hungary and the character of both New Left and ultra right political currents there.