“Another Hungary is possible”: Street artist Laika takes aim at Orbán ahead of Budapest Pride – PHOTOS
At dawn today, a striking new poster appeared in central Budapest, signed by the renowned street artist Laika. Titled Another Hungary is Possible, the artwork depicts Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in a queer persona, proudly waving a rainbow flag as if leading a Pride parade. On his suit is emblazoned the phrase “Free Maja”, a tribute to the non-binary anti-fascist activist currently imprisoned in Hungary.
With this bold action, Laika sends a clear and provocative message on the eve of the Budapest Pride, at a time when the Hungarian government has been attempting to suppress the event.
This is not the first time Laika has targeted Orbán’s government. Among the artist’s most famous works is a poster of MEP József Szájer – Orbán’s close ally – caught in the midst of a gay orgy during the COVID-19 lockdown, and Ila Resisti, in support of Italian anti-fascist activist Ilaria Salis, now a Member of the European Parliament.
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Until now, Laika’s politically charged artworks have all been created in Italy. This latest intervention marks the artist’s first direct challenge on Hungarian soil – timed deliberately to coincide with the Budapest Pride, which the Hungarian authorities have officially banned.
“Street art has the power to envision the impossible, the utopian”, Laika said. “Depicting Orbán marching for civil rights is, of course, a provocation, but it’s not meant to ridicule. It’s a dream: a dream of a Hungary where the prime minister does not dismantle the rule of law with freedom-crushing legislation, does not crack down on public demonstrations, but instead stands alongside the LGBTQIA+ community – a leader who respects human rights”.
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The artist warned that “Hungary is experiencing a dangerous authoritarian drift, with democratic safeguards increasingly eroded”. Laika condemned the government’s tolerance of, if not outright support for, far-right groups such as the Sixty-Four Counties Youth Movement (HVIM), which was granted permission by the government to march on the same streets as the Pride parade.
In May, the European Parliament formally urged Hungary to ensure Budapest Pride could proceed without interference. “Yet Italy was notably absent from the 20 countries that signed the motion”, Laika noted, “preferring instead to look favorably on the so-called ‘Hungarian model’”.
“Being here today involves real risk”, Laika added, “but it is also necessary – not just for Hungary’s LGBTQIA+ community, but for the whole of Europe. It’s vital to defend democracy and human rights. I’m also here to support Mayor Gergely Karácsony, who has bravely decided to let Pride go ahead despite the threats. Tomorrow, I’ll be there incognito at the march, and I hope to see many of you there. The homophobic and xenophobic black tide will not sweep us away. We are the tide”.
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