Group items tagged

The article mentions the views of Americans and the views of Egyptians regarding the state of Egypt with concerns surrounding the Muslim Brotherhood. Egyptians were able to carry a message to Americans. Egyptians voiced their want for U.S assistance with terrorism. 

This article highlights the Egyptian Revolution and its ties to social media. We have discussed Khaled Said in class and this article talks about the image of his dead beaten body appearing on Facebook and how it inspired Wael Ghonim, born in Egypt, living in Dubai, and many others to become activists in the revolution.

Journalist Charles Sennott recently returned from Tahrir Square, where he was filming a documentary on the revolution for PBS's Frontline. He describes how various groups of the youth came together to support a common cause. The Muslim Brotherhood had a very strategic role in the revolution. They hesitated to join in the beginning, and then the youth in their group pushed for greater involvement. The Brotherhood brought a lot of organization to the revolution. They positioned themselves as a central force of the revolution rather than a leading player in the uprising. They did not want Mubarak to pin the revolution on them. And it was not their revolution--it was a revolution of all Egyptians. Although the Muslim Brotherhood is aiming toward more of a social movement toward Islamic incorporation into the structure of society, they also want to establish themselves on the political playing field.

This author gives an analysis of where the Egyptian youth failed and succeeded in their revolution. He applauds their original motivation: overthrowing the oppressive regime and seeking political freedom. However, he criticizes the movement for not having organized goals with practical implications. Their focus was so set on overthrowing Mubarak that they did not have a plan once that was achieved. As a result, the youth allowed the military to become politicized and enforce their political ideas. The author claims this move set a dangerous precedent for the future and took away the attention of the military from places it was needed. The author claims that by endorsing the army to act militarily against the first civilian elected president of the country, the youth is undermining their original goals. He goes on to explain his suggestions for the Egyptian youth to get back on track and follow through in the remaining phases of the revolution.

Both the current Egyptian authorities and the Muslim Brotherhood have failed to attract the support of the youth, while women participated in the recent referendum to support stability. The youth see the remnants of Mubarak's administration through the government structure. The revolution wouldn't be important without changes to the government. Many political groups are trying to coax the youth to being on "their side," and meanwhile, the Egyptian youth are struggling to find any positives. Gaining the vote of the youth generally means a win or loss for the politicians.

Both the current Egyptian authorities and the Muslim Brotherhood have failed to attract the support of the youth, while women participated in the recent referendum to support stability. The youth see the remnants of Mubarak's administration through the government structure. The revolution wouldn't be important without changes to the government. Many political groups are trying to coax the youth to being on "their side," and meanwhile, the Egyptian youth are struggling to find any positives. Gaining the vote of the youth generally means a win or loss for the politicians.

This article actually talks about the professional terms associated with social media and the Egyptian Revolution. "Resource mobilization theory " It also gives real examples of tweets from Egyptian youth who kept the world updated with minute to minute statuses.  "@mfatta7 Tear gas  @mfatta7 I'm suffocating  @mfatta7 We r trapped inside a building  @mfatta7 Armored vehicles outside  @mfatta7 Help we r suffocating  @mfatta7 I will be arrested  @mfatta7 Help !!!  @mfatta7 Arrested  @mfatta7 Ikve [I've] been beaten a lot "

This article discusses how women have been treated differently since the beginning of time. Things began to change once women began to stand up for themselves in protests. 

Egypt's tradition of was not initially oppressive. The 1973 war in the Middle East introduced Egyptians to Wahhabis values.

There was a huge increase in number of internet usage in Egypt. The internet was a main pathway to join the revolution, but it also causes passive activism and most won't leave their houses to revolt.

Filmmakers are filming a film that talks about the sexual harassment issue that occurring in Egypt. Ninety-nine percent of women in Egypt have faced sexual harassment. It also shares the common misbeliefs that people believe due to American news. 

This article describes the position and demands of the Socialist Popular Alliance Party of Egypt. The relationship of the youth protesters with the Egyptian Left was solidified when the Left provided the youth with the political power to make their revolution successful. The Socialist Popular Alliance demands a new constitution and a new government structure that is based on democracy, human rights, and freedoms. Their political position and ideal social structure are very similar to typical American ideals, especially those of the American left political parties. However, the Public Alliance seems very angered over Mubarak's previous friendly relations with Israel. This population feels as though they were forced to abandon the Arab people and support Israel instead of Palestine. This is interesting because Egypt's relations with Israel has garnered tremendous political and economic support from the United States. Having an Arab ally has been an advantageous point of negotiation for Israel and the US. With the Popular Alliance in severe opposition to this position of Israeli sympathy, it is a surprise that they seem to embrace "Americanized" ideas. In addition, it is worth noting that the youth finds a great identity with the Arab culture, although not so much with a specific religion.

The Council on Foreign Relations published an article about democratization in the middle east and the major obstacles that are present in the process. While most assume Islamists and Islamic embedded institutions are the root of the delayed democratic transition, the problems are much bigger than that. While Islamist regimes do indeed stunt the growth of democratic progress in terms of creating a stable government, Arab countries struggle with economic and social factors as well. The Arab Spring Revolutions have caused economic and social degradation across the region, resulting in a road block of political leadership. Without a reliable and capable government structure, the states are unable to progress economically. However, in order to have a stable government, social and economic institutions must be in place to create this capitalist economy that they strive for. Because most wealth resides in oil, the revenue that the states bring in isn't distributed properly throughout society and is concentrated within few business elites. The article stresses that instead of foreign aid going into the hands of an unstable leader or regime, it should be invested in institutions in order to spur economic growth and eliminate corruption. Rather than focusing on the Islamist-secularist divide, the world should be working towards the strengthening of institutions to create a stable foundation for governance. 

This article/video is from pbs.org, talking about the revolution that happened 5 years ago at Tahrir Square. Women were apart of the revolution, by participating and leading protests. They were able to safely join men to protest, but changed later on. Female protestors were being sexually assaulted. Because of these assaults, laws are now being implemented in Egypt.

This article discusses the issue of censorship. By talking with Egyptian novelist Khaled al-Berry, presented is the idea of a strong hope for less censorship because the January 25th revolutions had opened up a future of possibilities and challenges for Egyptian literature. While in previous years there had been no actual direct political censorship, publishers would attempt both religious and moral censorship as a means to protect people. While the article does discuss that there will always be censorship, they also look forward to a culture that values art and reading that will change the perspective of the culture.

Though many of the youth leaders who participated in the 2011 revolution are in prison, youth-driven political campaigns will continue under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. A new movement that has risen, called the "We have had enough" campaign has several demands from the Egyptian youth. These include holding accountable anyone who was involved in killing any Egyptian, a debate about implementing separation of powers, setting minimum and maximum wages, and amending the protest law. These demands have led the state to release some of the prisoners of conscience, in an attempt to prevent any chaos before parliamentary elections. A similar movement, called the Dhank movement, arose in protest of the living conditions for the poorest Egyptians. The leaders of this movement encourage protests like refusing to pay electric bills because of a lack of service. The activists describe the need for the Dhank movement coming from Sisi's poor treatment of the lower class that included removal of subsidies and raising prices of commodities. The "We have had enough" campaign spokesman says they insist on the implementation of 14 human rights amendments. He ends by reiterating the consistent suspicion the youth groups have of the state and a lack of confidence that their demands will be met. This shows that there is no clear strategy or realistic possibility to ending the tension between youth groups and the state.

04 August 2013 Egyptian street art is everywhere; from the dark underside of 6 th October Bridge to the face of Giza Zoo - and even on the sides of tanks. Since the January 25th Revolution, artists in Cairo have been in inspired form and as a city, Cairo has become a forerunner in Middle-Eastern revolutionary art.

"The Poetry of Revolution" discusses the ideas behind the street chants shouted out by the Egyptian people in their times of revolution. It focuses on the history of Egypt's uprisings and how they have changed before. This article was written a few days after the initial January 25th uprisings and attempts to explain how the chants take on a greater meaning to the protesters. Because they are given words to yell and shout, they are able to bind together and announce the same goals. Colla discusses how if the people did not have these chants, they would be too afraid to stand for their revolutions.

This artifact focuses on Aya Tarek, a 24 year old Egyptian graffiti artist, who discusses how she began her journey into the art scene and what she believes in. An avid supporter of the revolution, Tarek also talks about how important it is to fight not only for the causes you believe in, but also for who you are.

This article talks about the details of the women's rights movement since 1952. After the revolution in 2011, women's rights has yet to become a topic of importance. 

This article talks about why Egyptians have mobilized against sexual violence. Most groups against sexual harassment started in 2012, after the revolution.