🙏 I’m deeply grateful to everyone who supported me throughout this project: the students I interviewed, the Belarusian activists I met, my supervisor, and colleagues within the SAR Italy network and the ESU community. Thank you!

💡 Like any scientific work, defining student academic freedom is a complex and evolving process—but, luckily, a shared one. If you have personal experiences, thoughts, or even contrasting ideas, please reach out! I’d love to see this article as an open space for continued conversation. 5/

👉 I conclude by proposing a 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐱𝐭-𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐜𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐨𝐦, grounded in two core elements: the individual dimension of capability development and the collective dimension of membership to the academic community. 4/

🔎 The article argues that students' experiences—and violations—of academic freedom in Belarus can be understood through four interrelated dimensions: 𝑃𝑟𝑒-𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑚𝑦; 𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑛 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑦; 𝐷𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑑; 𝐼𝑛𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑑𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑚𝑦. 3/

📌 Here, I explore the experiences of academic freedom among a group of Belarusian students prior to the 2020 Presidential Election. 2/

5/5 My deepest gratitude to the participants who shared their stories, their bravery, and their pain with me.

It is an honor to amplify their voices in this work.

📖 Read the full article here: doi.org/10.1093/jrs/...

4/5 More research is needed to understand what universities can do to support displaced students worldwide. Their role is more complex—and more crucial—than often assumed.

3/5 From this case study, my article explores universities as double-edged institutions in displacement:
🏛️ They can act as coercers, enforcing repression.
🏛️ But also as stabilizers, offering refuge.
This impacts both the processual and identitarian dimensions of displacement.

2/5 Honest University documented:
🔹 289 expulsions
🔹 58 recognized political prisoners
🔹 485 reprimands
🔹 914 cases of ‘prophylactic conversations’

Many of my participants faced these academic violations firsthand.

1/5 I conducted interviews with Belarusian students in 2021-22—one year after the 2020 elections, which saw one of the most brutal crackdowns on political rights in Belarusian history.

It was great ✨✨✨