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E-book
Author Achcar, Gilbert, author.

Title The people want : a radical exploration of the Arab uprising / Gilbert Achcar ; translated from the French by G.M. Goshgarian
Published Berkeley : University of California Press, [2013]
©2013

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Description 1 online resource (xii, 310 pages) : illustrations
Contents Introduction: Uprisings and Revolutions -- 1. Fettered Development -- 2. The Peculiar Modalities of Capitalism in the Arab Region -- 3. Regional Political Factors -- 4. Actors and Parameters of the Revolution -- 5. A Provisional Balance Sheet of the Arab Uprising -- 6. Co-opting the Uprising -- Conclusion: The Future of the Arab Uprising
Summary "'The people want.': This first half of slogans chanted by millions of Arab protesters since 2011 revealed a long-repressed craving for democracy. But huge social and economic problems were also laid bare by the protestors' demands. Simplistic interpretations of the uprising that has been shaking the Arab world since a young street vendor set himself on fire in Central Tunisia, on 17 December 2010, seek to portray it as purely political, or explain it by culture, age, religion, if not conspiracy theories. Instead, Gilbert Achcar locates the deep roots of the upheaval in the specific economic features that hamper the region's development and lead to dramatic social consequences, including massive youth unemployment. Intertwined with despotism, nepotism, and corruption, these features, produced an explosive situation that was aggravated by post-9/11 U.S. policies. The sponsoring of the Muslim Brotherhood by the Emirate of Qatar and its influential satellite channel, Al Jazeera, contributed to shaping the prelude to the uprising. But the explosion's deep roots, asserts Achcar, mean that what happened until now is but the beginning of a revolutionary process likely to extend for many more years to come. The author identifies the actors and dynamics of the revolutionary process: the role of various social and political movements, the emergence of young actors making intensive use of new information and communication technologies, and the nature of power elites and existing state apparatuses that determine different conditions for regime overthrow in each case. Drawing a balance-sheet of the uprising in the countries that have been most affected by it until now, i.e. Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Libya and Syria, Achcar sheds special light on the nature and role of the movements that use Islam as a political banner. He scrutinizes attempts at co-opting the uprising by these movements and by the oil monarchies that sponsor them, as well as by the protector of these same monarchies: the U.S. government. Underlining the limitations of the 'Islamic Tsunami' that some have used as a pretext to denigrate the whole uprising, Gilbert Achcar points to the requirements for a lasting solution to the social crisis and the contours of a progressive political alternative."-- Provided by publisher
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index
Notes English
Print version record
Subject Arab Spring, 2010-
Protest movements -- Arab countries -- History -- 21st century
Revolutions -- Arab countries -- History -- 21st century
Youth -- Political activity -- Arab countries
Unemployment -- Arab countries
Information technology -- Political aspects -- Arab countries
HISTORY -- Middle East -- General.
HISTORY -- World.
Economic history
Information technology -- Political aspects
Politics and government
Protest movements
Revolutions
Unemployment
Youth -- Political activity
Politiska förhållanden.
Arabiska våren 2010-
Proteströrelser.
Ekonomiska förhållanden.
SUBJECT Arab countries -- Politics and government -- 21st century
Arab countries -- Economic conditions -- 21st century
Subject Arab countries
Genre/Form dissertations.
History
Academic theses.
Thèses et écrits académiques.
Form Electronic book
Author Goshgarian, G. M., translator.
LC no. 2013014452
ISBN 9780520956544
0520956540
9781299709409
1299709400