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The Amazigh community played a role to varying degrees in the Arab Spring that took place in the Middle East and North Africa in 2011. Despite their participation in protests, most literature on the Arab Spring does not mention the Amazigh communities. Furthermore, the name of the movement suggests that it has an inherently ethnic character, while other non-Arab communities also participated. Below the experiences of three countries' Amazigh communities during the Arab Spring will be discussed.

Morocco
Morocco boasts the most Amazigh inhabitants of North Africa. The community has long been disenfranchised in the country. Since the 1980 Berber Spring took place in neighbouring Algeria, a rise in Amazigh activism was increasingly noticeable in Morocco. Amazigh communities also participated in the 2011-2012 Moroccan protests. The protests in Morocco, also known as the 20 February Movement, were inspired by the popular protests taking place in Tunisia, and initiated by young leftists of the country. Later, the leftists found themselves being joined by others, including the movement of the Amazigh community. It was not uncommon to see the Amazigh flag flown in images of the protests in Morocco at the time. The Amazigh population that participated in the protests were motivated by the lack of linguistic and pluralist recognition within Moroccan society. The Amazigh called for the recognition of their rights and their language. Following the urgent call for reforms, the King of Morocco changed the constitution. This ushered in a major change for the Amazigh community of Morocco, as the Amazigh language was officially recognised. Previously, the language was considered a dialect rather than an actual language. The Amazigh community was also mentioned – along with other minorities – in the constitution's introduction stating the country’s openness and tolerance towards all its citizens. However, the recognition of Tamazight can also be observed as a governmental tactic to lead to the defection of the Amazigh from the protests, as their long term main objective of language recognition had now been granted. Nonetheless, this was an important and unprecedented step; Morocco was the first country in North Africa where Arabic was not the only officially recognised language.

Libya
In Libya, the Amazigh were poorly treated under former President Gaddafi. Gadaffi's focus on Libya as being inherently Arab saw many attacks take place against Amazigh activists. One of the clear ways that the Amazigh were discriminated against under Gadaffi's regime was the fact that it was not permitted to give your new-born child an Amazigh name, and Amazigh children had to adopt an Arabic name upon entering school. When the 17 February Revolution gained a foothold in Libya, Amazigh activists played an important part in bringing down Gadaffi. The Amazigh activists saw the Revolution as a prime opportunity to ensure their inclusion in Libyan society, and they thus participated in the popular uprising against the President. The Nafusa region, where many of the anti-regime Amazigh fighters were located, was violently targeted by the regime. However, due to the chaos that incurred after Gadaffi was killed, many Amazigh ambitions were not met. The new cabinet, for example, did not include any ministers of Amazigh origins. Also, the new constitution did not recognise Tamazight as an official language, despite previous declarations saying that the language would indeed be officially recognised. The years following the revolution, in which the Amazigh were key players in the struggle for power, did not see many concrete improvements for the community. However, Amazigh activism has increased due to the continued structural subordination of them in Libyan society. After Gadaffi's regime fell, the practise of teaching Tamazight in schools in Amazigh regions became commonplace. Currently, Amazigh militancy is being framed as a threat to Libya's national unity, with Amazigh activists making their case for self-rule and regional autonomy.

Algeria
While Algeria has been commonly observed as “immune” to the Arab Spring, the country is still worth mentioning on this page. This is due to the fact that the country has the second largest Amazigh population in North Africa. Protests did indeed take place around the same time as the other Arab Spring protests in the region. Some of the most prominent protests at the time in Algeria, took place in traditionally Amazigh regions. One could often see the Amazigh flag flown during protests, but a considerable Amazigh movement did not emerge along the sidelines of the popular protests taking place. Nor did any substantial change-making protests take place, as most were quickly and efficiently deterred by the military regime. Flying the Amazigh flag was in fact prohibited 2019, as it was seen to undermine national unity. The Amazigh of Algeria have played a central role in resistance against the current military regime for some 40 years, but their plight has mostly been excluded from the Algerian national history narrative. In February 2016, the Algerian Parliament amended the constitution to include Tamazight as an official language of the country, though mechanisms of implementation of the inclusion of Tamazight are still lacking. The Arab Spring may not have ushered in a period of change for the Amazigh of Algeria, or the people of Algeria in general for that matter, but recent protests have been increasing. One of the reasons behind recent dissatisfaction towards the regime lie with the lack of promises being upheld regarding inclusion of Tamazight and Amazigh in national identity. Many Amazigh activists see the official recognition of Tamazight as merely a ruse to co-opt the Amazigh region.