Fighting the Georgian Dream: The 180+ Day Protest
Fredrik and Leilani dive into Georgia's unprecedented protest movement with Gota Chanturia, education policy specialist and member of the Movement for Social Democracy. For more than 180 days, Georgians have been on the streets opposing their government's dramatic shift away from European integration and toward Russian influence.
Gota explains how the parliamentary elections of October 2024 were manipulated and how the introduction of the so-called "Russian law" targeting civil society organizations sparked nationwide outrage. The conversation explores the deep connections between democratic backsliding and social inequality in a country where 700,000 people live in extreme poverty while oligarchic interests dominate politics.
This episode offers rare insight into a crucial resistance movement happening at the intersection of Europe and Russia, where citizens are fighting not just for democracy but for a vision of society that addresses profound social and economic challenges. Gota shares how international solidarity matters and what lessons Georgia's struggle holds for democratic movements worldwide facing similar authoritarian threats.
Also check out this episode mentioned during the talk:
Mass Protests and the Missing Revolution - a conversation with author Vincent Bevins
PUSHBACK Talks
Cities are becoming increasingly unliveable for most people. Costs are rising but incomes are not. Sky-high rents, evictions, homelessness, and substandard housing are common realities for urban dwellers across the planet. There is a global housing crisis. How did this basic human right get so lost? Who is pushing people out of their homes and cities, and what’s being done to pushback?
On the heels of the release of the award-winning documentary, PUSH, filmmaker, Fredrik Gertten and Leilani Farha, the former UN Special Rapporteur on the right to housing, have reconvened. Join the filmmaker and the advocate as they reflect on their experiences making PUSH and exchange ideas and stories about the film's central issue: the financialization of housing and its fall-out.
For more about PUSH and to view it: www.pushthefilm.com
For more about Fredrik Gertten and his other films: www.wgfilm.com
For more about Leilani Farha in her new role, Global Director of The Shift: www.make-the-shift.org
- No. of episodes: 135
- Latest episode: 2025-05-21
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