In 2008 Egypt witnessed a remarkable experience rich in political and democratic practices, and the sites captured back then should be revisited in the context of current events. In Spring 2008 the April 6 Youth Movement, an Egyptian activist group established to support the workers in an industrial town, appeared in local politics as an active force. It was followed by other opposition movements calling for democracy, social justice, free and fair elections and civil resistance. The group would later feature prominently in the Egyptian protests of 2011.

Other prominent websites in this archive include The Muslim Brotherhood which rose to power in 2012 before their downfall again in 2013. The Kefaya (Enough) movement was a group of various political forces aimed to establish a new government in Egypt in opposition to the Mubarak regime, and was a prominent opposition movement in Egypt’s early 21st century history. Important events in 2008 which had a large effect on political discourse concerned Egyptian gas exports to Israel which sparked large protests within the country. All in all, this collection of websites represents emerging expressionism by Egyptian political parties and movements, along with blogs and news media sites of the time. These sites may be considered a form of virtual ephemera, appearing prior to the advent of popular social media channels.

Collection Period: April 2008 to May 2008.

Frequency of Collection: Sites in the collection were targeted for capture weekly.

Languages: Collection material in Arabic, with English.