When Ukrainian Gen Z hit the streets to defend anti-corruption agencies, they turned protest signs into an art form. Armed with cardboard, markers, and three years of war-induced gray hair, they created what might be the most literate protest movement in recent memory.
These weren't your typical angry slogans. Protesters quoted Taras Shevchenko alongside modern poets, mixed classical Ukrainian literature with creative profanity, and crafted messages that read like Twitter threads gone beautifully offline. "Do cattle low when NABU is whole?" riffed on 19th-century novels. "Nations don't die of heart attacks—first their NABU and SAPO are taken away" played with national poetry. And yes, plenty of signs just said "fuck" in various creative arrangements.
Political experts later explained why the profanity worked so well: it desacralizes power and connects educated protesters with ordinary voters. Basically, when you tell authorities "you're wrong," you stay polite. When you say "you've lost your fucking minds," you're questioning whether they deserve power at all. Guess which one scares politicians more.
The result? President Zelenskyy backed down in 72 hours. Turns out democracy responds better to cardboard signs and literary references than most people expected.
Law 12414 would have transferred control of Ukraine's main anti-corruption bodies—NABU and SAPO—to a presidentially-appointed prosecutor general. These agencies were created after the 2014 Revolution of Dignity as independent watchdogs. For protesters, many of whom had relatives who died creating these institutions, the law felt like betrayal from within.
After three days of protests, Zelenskyy announced he would submit new legislation preserving the agencies' independence. Sometimes the pen—or marker—really is mightier than the sword.
From little Vova [Zelenskyy] to one big dickhead. Photo: Ukrainska Pravda
