November Freedom Parade
The Political Science Society of the Faculty of Arts at J. E. Purkyně University under the auspices of the Festival of Freedom (Festival svobody) has organised the traditional “November Freedom Parade” for students, academics, and the public on the occasion of International Student Day (Mezinárodní den studentstva) and the Day of Struggle for Freedom and Democracy (Den boje za svobodu a demokracii).
In the context of the nationwide celebrations of 17 November and related events, the Political Science Society of the Faculty of Arts of the University organised a gathering as part of the Festival of Freedom, for students, academics, and the public. The meeting took place on 22 November 2023 at the Václav Havel Bench in front of the building of the Faculty of Arts.
The entire event was thematically introduced and moderated by members of the university student associations, followed by a word to commemorate the November events by the Rector of the University, Jaroslav Koutský, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Václav Drška, as well as other guests, who lead a parade together with students from the university campus to the Central Park in Ústí nad Labem.
“The idea of the parade is a continuation of the commemorative events that have been organised for several years and which originally took place in the context of the assembly of the Academic Community of the Faculty of Arts. This year, however, the celebrations were based purely on student initiative and took place in cooperation with the Faculty Association of Students of Historical Sciences and with our colleagues from the newly established university LGBTQ+ association. We were also very happy to have the direct support of the Festival of Freedom, which helps with events of this type all over the Czech Republic,” emphasized the President of the Political Science Association, Matěj Mrhal.
Before and during the event, participants had an opportunity to light a candle at the respective memorials related to the struggles for freedom and democracy. To warm up, mulled wine was served on site. Donations have been sent to support the Memory of the Nation (Paměť národa) collection, which provides a publicly accessible online database of witnesses to the 20th century events.