Since November last year, students in Serbia have been taking to the streets for mass protests against corruption. The popular Exit Festival has backed the students, and now it says that it is facing “fierce government pressure and complete withdrawal of over €1.5 million in public co-funding and government-controlled sponsorships” as a result. The festival’s organisers have launched a crowdfunding campaign called ‘Save Exit Freedom’ with a mixture of donations and sales of future tickets, perks and digital assets.
“The recent Exit Festival is of immeasurable importance – a historical moment when one music festival boldly stood up against fierce governmental pressure aimed at silencing our freedom of speech and suppressing our support for Serbia’s brave students,” said founder Dušan Kovačević. “Through this crowdfunding campaign, we are standing up for the independence of an entire organisation and the people behind it. We strongly believe this is a moment for the music industry to unite, protect one of its own, and demonstrate that collectively it is stronger than any government in the world.”
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