SOURCE: BROOKINGS.EDU BY: ELENA IANCHOVICHINA To the Lebanese-American author Nassim Taleb almost all major discoveries and historical events are “black swans.” These very rare, extremely impactful events initially come as a surprise, but once they occur, they are often inappropriately rationalized with the benefit of hindsight. For Taleb, historical events such as World War I … Continued
SOURCE: THE WASHINGTON POST BY: SUDARSAN RAGHAVAN AND HEBA FAROUK MAHFOUZ CAIRO — In Tahrir Square, where hundreds of thousands of Egyptians once rallied for democracy, a giant television screen played videos of tanks, Egyptian soldiers and speeches by President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi. Election billboards of Sissi blanketed the area as his supporters waved national flags … Continued
SOURCE: ALJAZEERA In this week’s UpFront, we debate who is to blame for the chaos in Libya and whether the situation is better now than under the rule of Muammar Gaddafi. And in a Special Interview, we ask activist Maryam al-Khawaja about Bahrain’s uprising seven years on, the state of the country’s opposition parties and whether charges of Iranian influence are true. … Continued
Professor spread philosophy of non-violent resistance around the world in works including From Dictatorship to Democracy SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN BY: JOANNA WALTERS Gene Sharp, an obscure American political scientist whose writing on non-violent political resistance ended up being an inspiring influence on the Arab Spring, has died peacefully at home at the age of 90. … Continued
SOURCE: VOA NEWS BY: JAMIE DETTMER Rome-Revolutions have a nasty habit of taking off in unexpected directions, Friedrich Engels noted more than a century ago. The morning after, people realize “the revolution they made was nothing like the one they had wanted to make.” The 19th century political philosopher’s words seem especially apt for the … Continued
Riots in Tunisia echo the events of 2011, when unrest swept the Middle East SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN BY: EMMA GRAHAM-HARRISON When the people of Balta wanted to protest, they had to leave town. “This place is so small that blocking the road is like sitting in your own hall – no one notices,” said Wathik … Continued
SOURCE: DAILY NEWS BY: KOERT DEBEUF In 1965, Harvard scholar Crane Brinton wrote a book called The Anatomy of Revolution, in which he traces the similarities of four great revolutions: the Glorious Revolution, the American Revolution, the French Revolution, and the Russian Revolution. Using the French Revolution as a blueprint, Briton divides these large revolutions … Continued
SOURCE: THE NEW YORK TIMES BY: REMY TUMIN When the Arab Spring swept through Egypt in 2011, protests and riots ushered out decades of military rule under Hosni Mubarak. That change was short-lived as another military strongman, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, eventually took power. Arrests ensued, dissenters disappeared, and protests were met with violence. But what … Continued
SOURCE: THE CIPHER BRIEF BY: BENETT SEFTEL This Sunday marks seven years since a wave of protests erupted across the Middle East and North Africa in what came to be known as the Arab Spring. Tunisia, the country where the uprisings began, has been saluted as the revolution’s success story for managing a relatively … Continued
SOURCE: THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE BY: JUSTIN CHAU Seven years ago, hope resonated through the Arab world. In what became known as the Arab Spring, millions of people took to the streets of their towns and cities and demanded change. These demands usually revolved around desires for democratic reforms and an end to political corruption and … Continued
SOURCE: THE INDIAN EXPRESS BY: H.E. KHEMAIES JHINAOUI The radical change that took place in Tunisia in January 2011, that the rest of the world calls the “spark that lit the movement for democratic reform across the Arab world,” would never have happened without the strong determination and courage of the people of Tunisia. This … Continued
The vocabulary lists for Arabic lessons reflected both the country’s shifting politics and its enduring difficulties. By Peter Hessler The New Yorker When you move to another country as an adult, the language flows around you like a river. Perhaps a child can immediately abandon himself to the current, but most older people will begin … Continued
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