I recently came across a very interesting, informative, and inspiring website (thanks to my aunt and my sister sharing links on facebook). MideastYouth.com is a youth-run website created by Esra’a Al Shafei which is a grassroots network and platform for people in the Middle East and North Africa to discuss the struggle against oppression and serve as an alternative media. In an interview on TED.com, Esra'a Al Shafei explains that she began this MideastYouth.com in 2006. "At that time I was really just exploring how to use the Internet. I realized right away that it was going to be the tool, the weapon, with which we can advocate for change." (This makes me think of the inspiring youtube call to action that started the protests in Egypt). The authors are from many places, including Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Iraq, Egypt, Lebanon, Iran, Yemen, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Kurdistan, Libya, Jordan, Syria, Palestine, Israel, Pakistan, Tunisia, and Morocco. Their message is peace, solidarity, tolerance, and freedom from oppression. "Listen to us now, because soon ours will be the generation in charge."
MideastYouth.com covers a variety of topics that we do not hear about in the mainstream media. I am certain that I will spend many, many hours on this website and the many offshoots of this website. It discusses the Arab Revolution, the desire for peaceful coexistence between Palestine and Israel, homophobia in Middle Eastern and African countries, ignorance, extremism, and so many other topics. Okay, so I'm linking a lot. That's because I want you to really check out this website! Those are just some examples.
There are many projects stemming from MideastYouth.com. I will highlight a few. CrowdVoice is a user-powered service that tracks voices of protest from around the world. Apparently it has been censored in Bahrain, but it has documented many of the recent people uprisings. I was unaware until I came across BahaiRights.org that in many countries people of the Baha'i faith are denied human rights, as basic as the right to live. KurdishRights.org focuses on the need for basic human rights of Kurds, the uprisings in the Middle East, and preventing further genocide of Kurds in the Middle East. FreeKareem.org is focused on pressuring officials to free Kareem Amer, an Egyptian blogger who has been sentenced to 4 years in prison merely for expressing his opinions on his personal blog. There is MigrantRights.org, Israelis for Palestine, and many more. A new website they have started is Ahwaa.org. It is a place for discussion within the LGBTQ community in the Middle East and North Africa. This is a topic that is not only taboo in many places in the Middle East and Africa, where in many countries homosexuality is illegal and sometimes punishable by death, but it is also a topic that has been ignored by mainstream media (I'm talking BBC, NPR, Al Jazeera, and so on).
Here is a fun one: MideastTunes.com. It supports underground activist musicians in the Middle East! Here are a few interesting songs I found...
MideastYouth.com covers a variety of topics that we do not hear about in the mainstream media. I am certain that I will spend many, many hours on this website and the many offshoots of this website. It discusses the Arab Revolution, the desire for peaceful coexistence between Palestine and Israel, homophobia in Middle Eastern and African countries, ignorance, extremism, and so many other topics. Okay, so I'm linking a lot. That's because I want you to really check out this website! Those are just some examples.
There are many projects stemming from MideastYouth.com. I will highlight a few. CrowdVoice is a user-powered service that tracks voices of protest from around the world. Apparently it has been censored in Bahrain, but it has documented many of the recent people uprisings. I was unaware until I came across BahaiRights.org that in many countries people of the Baha'i faith are denied human rights, as basic as the right to live. KurdishRights.org focuses on the need for basic human rights of Kurds, the uprisings in the Middle East, and preventing further genocide of Kurds in the Middle East. FreeKareem.org is focused on pressuring officials to free Kareem Amer, an Egyptian blogger who has been sentenced to 4 years in prison merely for expressing his opinions on his personal blog. There is MigrantRights.org, Israelis for Palestine, and many more. A new website they have started is Ahwaa.org. It is a place for discussion within the LGBTQ community in the Middle East and North Africa. This is a topic that is not only taboo in many places in the Middle East and Africa, where in many countries homosexuality is illegal and sometimes punishable by death, but it is also a topic that has been ignored by mainstream media (I'm talking BBC, NPR, Al Jazeera, and so on).
Here is a fun one: MideastTunes.com. It supports underground activist musicians in the Middle East! Here are a few interesting songs I found...
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