Bahrain has a rich history of political activism dating back to the beginning of the oil industry in the early 1930s, an activism that is characterized by the recurring resort to street politics. The collective memory of Bahraini activists of all ideological persuasions is thus filled with stories from the great uprisings that have punctuated the country’s political life, referred to as intifadhat (intifadha, in the singular). The longest of these uprisings lasted more than four years, stretching from 1994 to 1999; it helped set the context for the month-long uprising that occurred in 2011. The uprisings that emerged during the first year of the Arab Spring did not come as a surprise; mass demonstrations and riots are tools to which Bahraini activists have resorted throughout history.