Since we’re discussing international matters and intra-national strife today, I thought rounding up a few links on the political activity going on in Tunisia would be a good idea. I am embarrassingly ignorant of the Maghreb, but the unrest there has already spread to Egypt, Yemen, and elsewhere in the Middle East, and I’m not seeing a lot of MSM attention.
So, first, for a run-down-in-a-nutshell, I’d recommend this piece from Dreams of a Typewriter.
Then, for a little more in-depth look at Tunisia, check out this article from The Nation. I especially appreciate this paragraph, as to why I’ve heard so little about the foment, despite it having gone on for a month already:
The initial lack of interest by the American press in the Tunisian protests may have something to do with the fact that there was no Islamic angle: the Tunisians were not trying to oust an Islamic regime, nor were they supporters of a religious ideology. In other words, this particular struggle for freedom was not couched in simple terms that are familiar to the Western media—Islam, bad; America, good—so it took a while for our commentariat to notice.
Lastly, since we do feminism here, and I heard a tiny slice of a story on NPR about Tunisian women’s role in these protests, I’d point you towards this article from The Australian, which does a little bit of the “Islam, bad” stuff, but is worth reading, because a democratic uprising against a (relatively) benevolent dictator might not end with net gains for women.
If you have other quality links about Tunisia, Egypt, or Yemen, please drop them in comments and we’ll try to get them through the mod queue in short order.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Vyckie D. Garrison, Pursuit of Harpyness. Pursuit of Harpyness said: WTF is Going on in Tunisia: Must-reads http://bit.ly/hx0hj3 [...]
Chris Hitchens has written about Tunisia in Vanity Fair long before now, and has a piece up in Slate about these goings on.
For a feminist Muslim view, check out Muslimah Media Watch’s coverage. Here’s their piece on the Tunisia uprising:
http://muslimahmediawatch.org/2011/01/friday-links-january-21-2011/
The site itself is excellent, taking on perceptions and portrayals of Muslim women in the media – both news and fiction like movies.
muslimamediawatch.org
hang on, typo
muslimahmediawatch.org
Thanks. This plus other recent events is making me lean towards using Twitter, which I’ve pooh-poohed for a while, albeit from the perspective of “I don’t need one more thingy to keep track of.” As a non-registered user I just spent a good chunk of time reading through tweets with the hashtag mentioned in that Dreams of a Typewriter piece. I like the idea of news as it happens… so, down the rabbit hole I go, maybe?!
I think the reason that people aren’t getting too hyped up yet is from the letdown of the Iran uprising. People aren’t even sure if the new Tunisian government will be any different. What we do know is the army/thuggish militias didn’t get involved in it to the magnitude they did in Iran and Myanmar recently.
The sad fact is that these events occur when the men with guns let them or can no longer defeat them in combat. Iran quieted down after the Supreme Leader recruited enough 19-year-old kids from the boondocks to stand in riot gear on street corners and crack skulls whenever people started protesting. Apparently the Tunisian military wasn’t so inclined. There’s probably a better chance the Egyptian security force will be.