The Arab Spring in Yemen

Type:

Book Chapter

Author:

Asher Orkaby

Published:

2021

Publisher:

Oxford University Press

This chapter explores the Arab Spring in Yemen, which arrived as a wave of popular dissent directed against the regime of Ali Abdullah Saleh in early 2011. What made this round of public demonstrations unique was both the scale of the participants in terms of sheer numbers and their ability to cut across political, religious, and gender boundaries in their opposition to the president. Although the movement was termed the "youth" revolution, participants were of all ages, united in their economic, societal, and political marginalization and disenfranchisement. Debating the future of Yemen was no longer limited to conversations held among the intellectual and military elite but was now conducted openly through social media, made available to any Yemeni with an internet connection. The new generation of Yemeni youth, in particular, was given the space and tools to participate in politics outside the purview of their elders. The very location of the protests in Change Square (Sahat alTaghiyir), in front of the new Sana'a University campus, reflected the movement's youth and educational aspirations. The chapter then looks at the main highlights of the protests in Yemen; how the protests were finally dissolved; and what kind of transitional government emerged.

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