The Rise of GenZ 212: A New Wave of Youth Activism in Morocco
Anti-government protests in Morocco have taken an unexpected turn, with a significant movement led by young activists using a platform primarily designed for gaming. This group, known as GenZ 212, has grown from a small team of four members to nearly 250,000 participants in just a few months. Their actions have sparked widespread attention and raised questions about the role of digital platforms in modern activism.
Despite a temporary pause this week, the protests are expected to continue until their goals are met. One of the organizers of the youth-led movement, which has become the largest anti-government protests in years, emphasized that the movement is committed to its cause. The protests, though marred by violence last week, have largely remained peaceful. In a statement published early Tuesday morning, the movement called for the government’s resignation, signaling a growing demand for change.
Analysts suggest that Morocco’s billionaire Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch may be forced to resign due to the pressure from these protests. Additionally, GenZ 212 has demanded reforms in the education and health systems, as well as the establishment of an independent and impartial judiciary.
“Health, education, and a good living situation isn’t something we should have to demand, these are our rights,” one organizer told PasarModern.com in a written interview. “But greed took them from us,” they added.
The organizer, who chose to remain anonymous, is one of the key figures behind the group GenZ 212, which has organized daily protests. None of the group’s organizers have been identified, and they plan to keep it that way. The person interviewed wouldn’t provide further details, stating that the movement speaks for itself.
The Origins of GenZ 212
The group was first founded on the online platform Discord in mid-September, with members calling for protests at the end of September. GenZ 212 started with just four people and was originally triggered by anger over what has been called “the hospital of death” in the coastal city of Agadir. Protests around the Hassan II Hospital had been ongoing for weeks due to patient mistreatment, lack of hygiene, misuse of drugs, and patient deaths.
“Morocco just needed a spark,” the GenZ 212 organizer said, explaining the connection to the hospital. “The movement really started because of the bad situation in Morocco, that my generation has to endure.”
At the time of writing, the group had close to a quarter of a million members. More than 80 other volunteers have since been recruited to help, the anonymous organizer told PasarModern.com.
Discord: The New Digital Public Square
Discord is a platform that was initially created in 2015 to allow players of online games to communicate easily while playing. It features text channels, voice chats, and various community management features but is usually classified as a “chat for gamers” app, offering both free and paid services.
Over the past few years, it has become increasingly popular with non-gamers too. In 2017, Discord had 45 million monthly active users. However, the COVID-19 pandemic saw a surge in usage, and earlier this year, the platform was recording over 200 million users monthly. Research suggests that almost a third of them don’t even play online games.
Discord, valued at around $15 billion (€12.8 billion), is now being used for community management by everyone from businesses and schools to climate activists and right-wing extremists, observers note. Recently, Discord has been in the news more frequently, not least because of its vital role in various Gen Z protest groups, such as those in Madagascar, Nepal, and Morocco.
Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old American who allegedly murdered right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk, discussed the killing on Discord. Other US school shooters and violent extremists have also been traced back to Discord groups. This week, the platform’s chief executive, Humam Sakhnini, will testify before US Congress on “the radicalization of online forum users.”
Long-time users point to Discord’s security flaws too. Anybody can join and everyone is anonymous, so groups can easily be infiltrated. Chat histories are never deleted even if a user leaves, and in September, a tranche of Discord user data was stolen by hackers. Nonetheless, as digital specialist French website, Zataz, explains, “Discord resonates with people under 30. The absence of intrusive algorithms, freedom of organization, and a sense of ‘peer-to-peer’ dialogue explain its popularity.”
Moroccan Police ‘Not Familiar’ with Discord
Morocco’s GenZ 212 is using Discord for very similar reasons. “It’s much easier to use, more secure and offers more channels to discuss different topics and to put announcements, not to mention voice chats that allow people to connect and get closer to one another,” the organizer told PasarModern.com. “Also, the Moroccan police is still not familiar with Discord.”
The decentralized nature of Discord, with multiple groups working in different channels at once and the continuous chatter, also suits GenZ 212’s evolving, collective ideology. The group has held online votes to decide what action to take next. After three protesters died during violence last week, organizers asked members to choose whether to demonstrate as usual (but peacefully, and with a time limit), to protest from their own balconies and rooftops so as to avoid police, or whether to take a day off in mourning. The first option won and protests went ahead.
Around half an hour before protests are due to take place, a list of locations for demonstrations is published on Discord. After protests end, there are chat sessions where members share their experiences and advice, in Arabic, English and French. The group has also asked members to ensure protests remain peaceful, to avoid criticism of Morocco’s king and to help tidy streets as a gesture of goodwill toward their communities.
GenZ 212 shy away from hierarchies and also regularly use their Discord channel to denounce anybody who claims to speak on their behalf.
Concerns About Keeping Control?
Of course, with close to 250,000 in GenZ 212, it’s impossible for anonymous organizers to maintain control over what members do in real life. Anonymity means the group cannot sit down and speak to Moroccan politicians who have called for dialogue either. Their current demands are “more general and are characterized by a kind of political romanticism,” Moroccan political analyst Rachid Belghiti recently told PasarModern.comArabic.
Some changes have been necessary, the anonymous organizer conceded, because the larger group has since been infiltrated by local security forces and other individuals who might try to sabotage discussions. So trusted members have had to start verifying those allowed to vote on future moves, they explained.
It’s not ideal, the anonymous group organizer continued, “but we believe the group will never get out of control as long as we discuss everything and everybody feels as though their voices will be heard, not like in real life. Democracy is always the way,” they stressed.
The interviewee and other leading members also plan to remain anonymous. “Because the country’s security system is known for being bloody … we will not be sitting at any bargaining table either. There isn’t anything to bargain about, when it comes to health, education and a decent living situation,” they concluded.
