Tarikhi (Arabic for "My History") is a library of oral histories produced by Sharq.Org during the decade following the Arab Spring of 2011, at a time when previously censored and silenced voices found strength through collective action and forged microphones from new opportunities to be heard.

The human mind is malleable and all the ugliness that comes with war - destruction, death, displacement, othering, loss, hatred - impacts memories. In creating this library, it was our desire to document personal stories of lived experiences about culture, conflict, cuisine and other social issues that occurred during and in the years leading up to the Spring, before the ashes of war muted them and renewed fear prevented them from being shared.

The freedom that the people of the region sought when they took to the streets en masse to protest brutal authoritarian regimes has yet to won. Many of those who rose up against repression lost their homes, their loved ones, their lives. And yet among all that loss, the living often found hope in each other, through shared experiences and stories. It is therefore also our hope that these stories help keep that sense solidarity and ambition alive within those who wish well for the people of the region.