"ЋАЦИ У ШКОЛУ"

Ćaci is one of the slang terms of the ongoing anti-corruption protests in Serbia, caused by the Novi Sad raiway station canopy collapse on November 1st, 2024. Originating from the graffiti "Ćaci u školu" (English: "Ćaci to school"), this graffiti was written on the fence of the Jovan Jovanović Zmaj Gymnasium in Novi Sad.

On December 16th, 2024, this Gymnasium was blocked because of the principal, Radivoje Stojković, who sent the apology to the Prime Minister, Miloš Vučević, as his son was forced out during the 15-minute vigil for the victims of the tragedy. Students demanded his apology, but in response, he was kneeling and praying instead, refusing to answer the questions.

On January 9th, 2025, students ended the blockade since of their demands were accepted, except the apology. On January 22nd, an unknown artist, presumably someone from the Serbian Progressive Party, wrote a graffiti, misspelling it using the letter Ћ (Ć) instead of Ђ (Đ) in the Serbian word "Đaci" (English: "Students").

This was seen as an attempt by the ruling SNS to mock students, backfiring due to the illiteracy. It was awarded the "1st place for the worst knowledge in Cyrillic". The image spread rapidly on social media, inspiring memes and commentary. At first, Ćaci was just a slang term to describe students, but soon, it became hated.

On March 6th, 2025, a student group known as "Students 2.0" describing itself as "Students who want to study", led by Miloš Pavlović, who's a medical student at the University of Belgrade, formed a camp called "Ćacilend" in Pioneers Park in Belgrade. They organized press conferences and presented their demands, but many people saw them as traitors who work for the SNS.

The park was surrounded by metal fences and tractors, especially on March 15th, when the protest in Belgrade was organized. It included the veterans of the JSO forces who carried out assassinations of the opponents of Slobodan Milošević. They were also involved in instances of war crimes during the Kosovo War.

President, Aleksandar Vučić, supported for the Students 2.0 several times, that he was seen wearing a T-Shirt "I ja sam Ćaci" (Serbian: "I'm Ćaci too"), leading to even more hate. Soon, protesters created a new chant called: "Ko ne skače, taj je Ćaci" (English: "Whoever doesn't jump is Ćaci"), describing SNS supporters and all of those people who don't want to fight for justice.

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