Egypt, like many Middle Eastern and North African countries, has lived under decades of iron-fisted rule by an autocratic government. Explore what life was like for young people growing up in that environment.

“Once I tried to teach a class about the revolutions and the uprising, I had 300 students signed up for the course. The week before it started the school had to pull the class. The government controls everything, down to the books we use in school.” -Pandeli Glavandis

This section of the site lays out the traditions, history and religion of the Middle Eastern and Northern African countries; explaining the lack of separation between religion and state, what the culture is like while growing up, and how citizens will fair living in under an autocratic regime.