Lili Rutai is a freelance journalist based in London and Budapest. She has previously reported for Vice, The Calvert Journal, and Atlatszo.hu about social issues, culture, and politics in Hungary.
Despite government incentives, many Hungarians are choosing not to have children -- and are increasingly vocal about it.
In just a few months, Peter Magyar has gone from the unknown husband of a former justice minister to the great new hope of Hungary's opposition. Part of his success is due to his popularity with young people, who, in Viktor Orban's Hungary, are often disillusioned and politically apathetic.
A newly refurbished museum in Hungary is devoted to the 1920 Trianon Treaty, in which Hungary lost around two-thirds of its territory. The state-funded museum is part of a campaign by the right-wing government to foster national unity and a sense of injustice among ordinary Hungarians.
Thousands took to the streets of Budapest over the weekend following the pardoning of a man complicit in the sexual abuse of children. With the case already claiming the scalp of the country's president, the protests have been energized by social media influencers and are bringing in a new crowd.
Hungary's so-called anti-LGBT law, which its supporters say is designed to guard minors from LGBT content, has inadvertently sparked increased public support for the LGBT community, fostering a significant rise in both interest and engagement with LGBT-related arts and cultural discourse.
Wary of population decline and the economic consequences of brain drain, the Hungarian government has launched an expensive and controversial program to try to bring young emigrants back home. But many young people -- unhappy about Hungary's political and economic direction -- don't want to return.
A new wave of Hungarian hip-hop artists is embracing politics, mostly by boisterously mocking the right-wing Fidesz government. For Hungarians who have grown up during Orban's 12-year rule, rappers and their concerts have become a crucial outlet for dissent.
At a time when rampant inflation has taken a sizable chunk out of Hungarians' pensions, a start-up embroidery business in the economically deprived northeast is helping elderly women survive.
During the pandemic, Hungary's famed Lake Balaton became increasingly popular, leading to a huge increase in prices and the new construction of hotels and marinas. This, along with rampant inflation, makes Balaton increasingly inaccessible for average Hungarians, and many locals are moving away.
Citing low pay, increasing workload, and burnout, thousands of Hungarian teachers are leaving the profession. Finding replacements isn't easy, and very few recent graduates are choosing to enter the pedagogical profession.
After Russia's invasion of Ukraine, many Roma from Ukraine's Transcarpathia region fled for neighboring Hungary. With unclear legal status, many were denied the rights of other refugees, and ended up in mass shelters. Now with the help of Hungarian grassroots groups some are rebuilding their lives.
Despite having a female president, only 13 percent of the seats in Hungary's parliament are taken by women, much lower than the EU average of 33 percent. Rather than just being a recent problem, however, the scarcity of women has characterized Hungarian politics since the fall of communism.
The Two-Tailed Dog Party started life as a joke: pledging to build a mountain and promising voters free beer and eternal life. But now, as the most popular opposition party among the under-40s, the party is finding out that politics is not all fun and games.
Heviz has long been a popular destination for Russians but the coronavirus pandemic and now Russia's war on Ukraine have ended the stream of Russian tourists seeking rest, relaxation, and restorative waters. Locals fear that Heviz might never recover.
Hungary has outlawed all private institutions from offering IVF treatment, with the government saying it wants to make the procedure more accessible and help stop the shrinking of the population. Instead, fewer people are able to receive fertility treatment and many are looking to go abroad.
Ahead of elections that could unseat Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a crop of young politicians from his party are trying to attract a young crowd. But with unprecedented levels of spending on memes and action movies, some in the opposition are accusing the ruling party of having an unfair advantage.
A distant, more glamorous cousin to traditional ballroom dancing, the modern ballroom and vogue scenes are exploding in Hungary. For the country's under-pressure LGBT community, it has been a home away from home.
After being given voting rights in 2012, the traditional Hungarian diaspora has been loyal to Viktor Orban. But a new generation of Hungarians living in Western Europe -- many of whom are young, politically engaged, and no fans of the Hungarian prime minister -- is changing the electoral calculus.
They got the shots to protect themselves -- and so they could visit bars and clubs. They didn't expect that in a few months, they wouldn't be able to go on vacation.
