POLITICAL CONTEXT: DISSENT AND EXILE IN EGYPT, SYRIA, AND IRAN Countries in the Middle East and North Africa—such as Iran, Syria, and Egypt—are undergoing a period of profound political change and conflict. Across the region, protest movements for social justice and political freedom are challenging long-term dictatorships. In response, regimes have resorted to repression and violence, imposing severe constraints on members of the opposition, civil society, and media.16 This authoritarian backlash dashed aspirations of more political and economic participation, pushing many people—especially those of the younger generations—to emigrate. Additionally, many of the activists and journalists involved in the protest movements were forced into exile where they then continued to advocate for human rights and political change. In Iran, the protests of the Green Movement against the manipulation of the 2009 presidential elections were followed by a crackdown on the reformist opposition and civil society that stifled political and civic activism. The following years saw the largest exodus of journalists and activists since the Islamic Revolution.17 Although the election of a moderate president in 2013 provided temporary reprieve, restrictions on political and civil liberties remained severe. Religious minorities, women’s rights advocates, and environmentalists were among recent targets of state pressure.18 Those who left joined a large and diverse Iranian diaspora in Europe and North America whose roots date back to even before the 1979 revolution. Organizations and initiatives emerging after the Green Movement often united second generation migrants with recent exiles, overriding previous barriers and instilling new life in Iranian diaspora activism. 19 In Syria, the 2011 uprising against the regime of Bashar Al-Assad has morphed into a protracted civil war. 16 Ansari, A. M. (2010). Crisis of authority: Iran’s 2009 presidential election. Chatham House, London; Ketchley, N. (2017). Egypt in a time of revolution. Contentious Politics and the Arab Spring. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press; Yassin-Kassab, R., & Al-Shami, L. (2018). Burning country: Syrians in revolution and war. Pluto Press, London. 17 Human Rights Watch. (2012). Why They Left: Stories of Iranian Activists in Exile. https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/ iran1212webwcover_0_0.pdf; Michaelsen, M. (ed.) (2011) Election Fallout: Iran’s Exiled Journalists on their Struggle for Democratic Change, Berlin: Hans Schiler. https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/iez/08560.pdf. 18 Amnesty International (2019, January 24). Iran’s ‘year of shame’: More than 7,000 arrested in crackdown on dissent in 2018. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/01/irans-year-of-shame-more-than-7000-arrested-in-chilling-crackdown-ondissent-during-2018; United Nations (2019, July 18). Report of the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran. https://undocs. org/en/A/74/188. 19 Kelly, M. (2011). Transnational diasporic identities: Unity and diversity in Iranian-focused organizations in Sweden. Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, 31(2), 443-454. 10