What India’s ‘cockroach’ protests reveal about youth, solidarity and hope

In response to a derogatory remark made in May 2026 by India’s chief justice, who called unemployed youth in India “parasites” and “cockroaches,” the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) was born. Rather than reject the label, Gen Z claimed it defiantly and turned it into a symbolic reassertion of identity. Described as unprecedented due to its reach, impact and speed, as well as its creativity and courage, this Gen Z movement shares a playbook with other recent youth-led uprisings in South Asia and…