Inside Albania’s youth-led ‘flamingo revolution’

This article Inside Albania’s youth-led ‘flamingo revolution’ was originally published by Waging Nonviolence.

Just before dusk, a crowd began marching down Dëshmorët e Kombit Boulevard in Tirana, Albania’s capital, toward Prime Minister Edi Rama’s office. As they approached, the sound of drums and their chants calling for “revolution” got louder. Once they arrived, the national anthem echoed throughout the avenue.

Since May 31, protesters have been setting off every single day at 6 p.m. from Skanderbeg Square to take part in what has been dubbed the “Flamingo Revolution.” The iconic bird was chosen because of its connection to the natural protected area of Vjosa-Narta in Zvernec, where plans for a $1.4 billion luxury resort linked to Jared Kushner, an American real estate mogul and Donald Trump’s son-in-law, have caused fierce opposition. The project’s scale would require ecocide, endangering thousands of species in Europe’s last wild river delta. The lack of transparency and corruption has also riled up the local population, who were fenced off from their own land without notice. 

The initial protests in Zvernec started as a dispute between residents joined by environmental groups against the developers who fenced off the area and brought heavy machinery into an extremely sensitive ecosystem. However, the protests exploded when a resident was assaulted and dragged by a private security member in the presence of the police, who stood by without intervening. 

Protesters tell me this is the first time they have felt hopeful that the system will change. With an estimated 100,000-200,000 people joining the protests on the weekend, this is the biggest nationwide movement the country has seen since the fall of Enver Hoxha’s communist regime. Protesters chant “Albania is not for sale” and “Rama quit” to the tune of “Seven Nation Army” by The White Stripes, reminiscent of U.K. football fans. 

Previously, protests such as those that occurred in February 2026 amid a corruption probe into then-Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku have been co-opted by opposition parties. Between 2018 and 2019, a student movement against sweeping privatization reforms of higher education prepared many young people to become more politically conscious. They were successful in forcing the government to drop tuition fees, but it ended there. This time, protesters are demanding much more.

More unity than ever

As a youth-led uprising, for many it has become a form of socializing. “We are joking that we have replaced meeting for coffee with going to the protest as a hangout,” said Sara, a 23-year-old protester. 

Olsi Nika, who heads the environmental group EcoAlbania, says that the current political system has alienated Gen Z-ers. “The majority of the protesters are young people who were raised with a progressive European mentality,” he explained. “So, how on Earth can you set up a formula that … is driven by a political elite that is still operating on the mentality of the old regime?” 

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While the movement has no definitive leadership, everyone helps however they can. One elderly protester brings free fruit, and another elderly couple hands out bottles of water. Another group of friends picks up litter from the streets. One of them, named Thea, says that they got together and decided to do this so the municipality’s street cleaners don’t have to bear the brunt of the government’s actions that people are protesting. “This is an injustice done to the Albanian people. Our land is being sold to foreign investors with no transparency, and we are being sealed off from it,” she explained. 

Other volunteers have also set up a “kids’ corner” for those coming with their families. I often see three generations of the same family together in the square. One of them is 42-year-old Elvira. “This is all about young people having a future in this country. I am here because of them, for my daughter,” she said. 

Protesters are taking pride in mobilizing with dignity and unity like never before. Sidorela Vatnikaj, an activist working across social issues, says that she joined forces with others from a multitude of groups to support the protests with logistics. She even spent money out of pocket to set up a sound system and invite members of the public to come and speak without having to be on a list. Everyone — young, old, established activists, ordinary people, city residents and rural dwellers — has stepped forward to voice grievances and motivate the crowds to not give up on their cause. 

Every evening, new people address the crowd. The 14th day featured people from the diaspora who had traveled back home to share their stories. They talked about the hardships of emigration and that they won’t stand for a country that forces its young people to leave. Vatnikaj says that many came in on a one-way ticket because they saw for the first time hope that things might change. 

Similarly, Maya, a veterinary doctor in Sweden, said she used her annual leave to come back so she could protest with her people in Tirana. Elsewhere, across all major cities with sizable Albanian populations, diasporas and their allies have been marching in solidarity. 

Sara also tells me that solidarity from abroad has overjoyed people in Albania. “Gen Z-ers are all fed up with their politicians and the system,” she said. “That’s a big thing we have in common. We see each other, how we have been rising, and we give each other hope.”

People connecting on the internet have been essential in propelling mobilizations.

“The movement is organized purely online,” said Gent Fetahaj, a tourism expert and protester. He shows me on his phone how the protest location has been geotagged on Google Maps as “Flamingo Revolution.” The reviews are all five stars. 

Social media wasn’t only essential in organizing the protests because Gen Z is very digitally-oriented, but also because there is diminishing trust in traditional media. Marijola, a biology student who has joined the protests with classmates from her university, created online groups and chats with friends to share information and coordinate. “Using social media avidly was the only way to find out about the protest since mainstream Albanian media did not even report on it until much later.” 

This is the case for Alis, a student who has been using her social media platforms to talk about the protests and the situation at large. “Social media became a necessity in Albania because the press here is not to be trusted,” Alis said. “Our local media, which we pay license fees to, did not cover our protests for more than five days until they had no option. So, we rely on alternative channels for informing each other and organizing.” 

Protest humor has also become a defining characteristic of this movement as many attendees use meme references and pop culture to express their dissent. Every day at the protests feels like an unofficial competition about who will come up with the funniest protest sign for the day. Some of them poke fun at Ivanka Trump for claiming in an interview that she “discovered” Sazan island — where Kushner plans to develop a luxury resort with his company Affinity Partners — and climbed it barefoot. 

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Artists and creative individuals have also been banding together to create compelling visuals for the protest. “We are trying to convey our dissent through the beauty of art,” said Argita Dulaj, an urban planner and architect who was holding a placard reading “Hands off Vjosa-Narta.” She was at the protest because the government is acting arbitrarily, taking advantage of illegitimate means to build over protected areas without transparency or public consultation. 

The issues at large 

Albania transitioned to democracy only 35 years ago, and it has been under a two-party system that concentrated power in a few hands. Incomplete transitional justice after the fall of the communist regime has caused many unaddressed rifts that affect society today and are now becoming rallying points at the protests.

One of those issues is the fear of the state apparatus and land grabs by opportunists looking to exploit legal loopholes. “This is not the democracy we have been dreaming of. This anger has been building for a long time,” Vatnikaj said.  

The state is trying to intimidate people by having unidentifiable plain-clothed police among the protesters who muscle people around. People also face threats of losing employment and legal troubles. 

Almost everyone I talked to identified fear and censorship as key challenges to overcome. “They have killed our fear, and we have nothing to lose,” Alis said. “We are not scared anymore of the propaganda. We want to get rid of patronage politics and the intimidation.” 

The concerns fueling the movement are evolving beyond what initially sparked the protests. People bring up material concerns, dilapidated infrastructure and public services, as well as increasing authoritarianism and corruption as their motivation. “We want the fall of the whole system. This government is only benefiting the oligarchs, and the divisions between the rich and poor are getting bigger,” Alis said. As I turn around on my left, a Wolt driver has plastered a sign on his moped that reads “economist by profession, delivery driver by need.” 

Dulaj wants to see Law No. 21/2024 repealed, which has amplified the prime minister’s power to fast-track development projects in protected areas. But she also wants to see the whole government purged of corruption. “We have really big problems in Albania right now, and the kind of investments they make in tourist areas will solve none of that,” she said. 

She has not migrated, because she wanted to use her knowledge and skills to contribute to her country, but opportunities are diminishing. “Our government invites foreign companies and their own people to work on all kinds of high-budget projects, and all they expect of us is to be cleaners and bartenders in their resorts,” she said. “As an architect, I learned that what makes you good at this job is staying in touch with the community you are serving. I want to use my skills and knowledge to help my country, not to work for billionaires in their resorts.” 

The future 

For the movement to be successful and sustain itself, the demands will need to become more targeted. 

Fetahaj explains that because the protected area is an issue that transcends borders, due to its significant biodiversity and its connection to the UNESCO-recognized Vjosa Valley Biosphere Reserve, it has attracted international pressure. If the protests were solely based on domestic problems, they wouldn’t have drawn the same attention. “This issue is linked to EU ascension and that’s the strategy we need to follow to see tangible results,” he said. “We should sharpen our demands into a few concrete points while working towards greater change. Chances of being successful are higher that way. I hope that the young people … will not tire until these demands are met.” 

Evidently, the European Union’s recent call to the Albanian government to halt the construction in Vjosa-Narta has given people a major win. Construction at the site has stopped for now, but no one knows if this will last, so activists keep monitoring the situation. 

Nika, echoing these points, placed the environmental issue at the center. “We insist on the environmental aspect because it’s about our dignity and identity as a country. That’s what our nature represents,” he said. “It’s tied to our history as a people, and if these values are gone, we will have lost connection with who we are. If the protests don’t produce clear political demands and all this energy is not put into producing a clear political plan, then we will have to wait another 30 years until the next student protests erupt.” 

Vatnikaj is surprised by people’s readiness to protest. A really big weight has been shifted, she says, because people have not only become more politically conscious, but they feel like they are not alone anymore. “We have become stronger, united.”

Similarly, Marijola says that they are in this together. “Even though our government is not taking us seriously, we are the future of this country, and we will shape it together ourselves.”

As for Alis, protesters have already succeeded just by the fact that this is the first time in a long while that people have overcome their fears and come to the streets. “We are not turning back.”

This article Inside Albania’s youth-led ‘flamingo revolution’ was originally published by Waging Nonviolence.

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Source: https://wagingnonviolence.org/2026/06/inside-albania-flamingo-revolution-kushner/