Date: December 11, 2o15
Time: 6:30 pm
Location: Center for Arabic Culture
191 Highland Av. Suit 6B. Somerville, MA 02143
On January 14th, 2011, the people of Tunisia took to the streets in mass protest and toppled the government of Ben Ali. The event has a tremendous impact in the region which triggers the Arab Spring. Following the revolution, Tunisians make the radical choice to draft a new state constitution. Called to the urns for the first free elections of their history, the citizens of Tunisia will have to choose which model of society they wish to live in. Islam, secularism and women’s status become the major themes of a campaign under high pressure.
Following the events day by day, TUNISIA, YEAR ZERO tells the story of a difficult birth: that of the first democracy in the Arab world. In 6 months, no less than 110 political parties were created. In this political turmoil, a few of them emerge: the Islamist party Ennhada seduces those disappointed with the revolution. Some other modernist parties, such as Ettakatol and the PDP, are divided on the content of their policies as well as on which strategy to adopt. Leading the polls, Ennahdha will confirm its success in the elections with more than 90 seats out of 217.
How could these results be predicted? TUNISIA, YEAR ZERO gives the reasons for the outcome of the elections.
This Event is Free and Open to the Public
Donations Welcome
The Center for Arabic Culture (CAC) is a nonprofit organization that promotes Arabic language, culture and the Arab American experience at its best, through its Arabic school at Mt. Ida College in Newton and its Center at the Armory in Somerville.
CAC’s main goal is to build bridges and open exchanges between the Arab-American community and the New England Community at large. CAC is reaching its 10-year mark and its existence is only possible because of generous donors like you, the vision of its founders and current Board, the hardworking staff member, its teachers and the many volunteers.
We pride ourselves in having created all this programming with only one paid staff member and a large team of volunteers. With your support we can continue to bring more content.
Please continue to be generous as our services are unique and are not offered elsewhere in Massachusetts. We aim to offer an intensive summer course for children this summer and we hope to grow our extra-curricular activities for them. Your funding makes our programming for you possible. The school tuition barely pays for the rent and the teachers.
All our contributing donors above $100 will automatically become CAC members and enjoy our membership benefits according to their level of contribution. CAC is a registered 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. Donations are tax-exempt.
Photos By: Jan Komsta
Come hear about this bilingual storybook made by children of Aida Refugee Camp in Bethlehem, The West Bank!
Book Reading Event with Professor Amahl Bishara
Saturday, December 5, 4:30-6:00
191 Highland Av. Suite 6B. Somerville, MA 02143
Middle Eastern Reception & Light refreshments will be served. Free to the Public
Children of Aida Refugee Camp at Lajee Center made this bilingual storybook. It is for people of all ages (5-105) to learn about everyday life in a Palestinian refugee camp. You will pick up some Arabic, too!
Copies are $20, bulk rates available. Also available is The Boy and the Wall (2005, $15), a bilingual children’s book about how a young boy dreams of resisting the wall that oppresses his community every day, and how his mother supports his dreams for freedom and his imagination. Both books feature collage art made collectively by children at Lajee Center.
For more information, email Amahl Bishara at friendsoflajee@gmail.com.
All proceeds benefit Lajee Center, www.lajee.org.
Thank you for your support of our work!
The MIT Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering has established an endowed fund in honor of our dear friend Professor Mujid Kazimi to support graduate students. Mujid passed away suddenly in July while on business in China.
Class if Full! Registration is now closed
Check our website for the next class date! We will announce it soon!
Cook With CAC! Kunafa Nabulsieh Lesson!
Join the New Cook with CAC session at Union Kitchen on November 13! Enjoy home-style Arabic authentic cooking you cannot find at any culinary school. We’ll learn a popular Arabic dessert “Kunafa”! It is a very famous Arabic dish and an excellent addition to the table during Thanksgiving and the holidays! It is a hands on Class! Learn and Dine!
Location: Union Kitchen 121 Washington St. Somerville, MA 02143
Date: Friday Nov. 13, 2015 6:15- 9:00 pm
Registration Fee: $35/ person
To Register today Click Here
Going beyond the headlines, this story—filmed in the fourteen months leading up to the Revolution— highlights the years of mounting resentment against the ruling regime. Filmmaker Lillie Paquette follows key opposition figures and young democracy activists as they struggle against extraordinary odds to remove an uncompromising US-backed authoritarian regime determined to stay in power.
Date: Friday October 30, 2015
Time: 6:30 pm
Location: Center for Arabic Culture
191 Highland Av. Suit 6B. Somerville, MA 02143
Free and Open to the Public
Followed by an Open Discussion with director Lillie Paquette
“Winner at the Sundance Film Festival, 5 Broken Cameras is a deeply personal, first-hand account of non-violent resistance in Bil’in, a West Bank village threatened by encroaching Israeli settlements.”
Date: Friday November 20, 2015
Time: 6:30 pm
Location: Center for Arabic Culture
191 Highland Av. Suite 6B. Somerville, MA 02143
Free and Open to the Public
On January 14th, 2011, the people of Tunisia took to the streets in mass protest and toppled the government of Ben Ali. The event has a tremendous impact in the region which triggers the Arab Spring. Following the revolution, Tunisians make the radical choice to draft a new state constitution. Called to the urns for the first free elections of their history, the citizens of Tunisia will have to choose which model of society they wish to live in. Islam, secularism and women’s status become the major themes of a campaign under high pressure.
Following the events day by day, TUNISIA, YEAR ZERO tells the story of a difficult birth: that of the first democracy in the Arab world. In 6 months, no less than 110 political parties were created. In this political turmoil, a few of them emerge: the Islamist party Ennhada seduces those disappointed with the revolution. Some other modernist parties, such as Ettakatol and the PDP, are divided on the content of their policies as well as on which strategy to adopt. Leading the polls, Ennahdha will confirm its success in the elections with more than 90 seats out of 217.
How could these results be predicted? TUNISIA, YEAR ZERO gives the reasons for the outcome of the elections.
Date: Friday December 11, 2015
Time: 6:30 pm
Location: Center for Arabic Culture
191 Highland Av. Suit 6B. Somerville, MA 02143
Free and Open to the Public
Going beyond the headlines, this story—filmed in the fourteen months leading up to the Revolution— highlights the years of mounting resentment against the ruling regime. Filmmaker Lillie Paquette follows key opposition figures and young democracy activists as they struggle against extraordinary odds to remove an uncompromising US-backed authoritarian regime determined to stay in power.
Date: Friday October 30, 2015
Time: 6:30 pm
Location: Center for Arabic Culture
191 Highland Av. Suit 6B. Somerville, MA 02143
Free and Open to the Public
Followed by an Open Discussion with director Lillie Paquette
Art Exhibition September 10 – December 23, 2015
Opening Reception Thursday, September 17, 2015, 5:30-7 pm
The Elliot K. Wolk Gallery is free and open to the public Monday through Friday, 9AM – 5PM. The gallery is located in MIT Building 7, Room 338, at 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge.
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Images are often used as communicative devices to present politicized messages. During the recent Arab World uprisings, demonstrators created images to express opposition to incumbent governments and members of the ruling elite. Over and again, activists, protesters, artists, and other individuals adopted the expressive media—including videos, photographs, painted and digital images, as well as slogans, music, and even puppets—to create visualized and performed modes of dissent within public space, both in the streets and online.
www.artsofthearabworlduprisings.com