As the Syrian revolution has been fighting long for their freedom from the brutal dictatorship of Bashar Hafez al-Assad, and as the refugee crisis intensifies, this documentary offers a harrowing, and incredible perspective about these massive, current issues. With the immense help of gathering people via Facebook and other social networks, the regimes of Egypt, Tunisia and and Libya had successfully been dismantled by the people, and Syria was attempting to follow suite. But al-Assad’s reign of terror has continued.

This documentary titled, #chicagogirl: The Social Network Takes on a Dictator, takes you into the world of a Syrian activist fighting for her people through the power of the connections through social networks.  This film is available on Netflix, and follows the life of Ala’a Basatneh, the young woman leading the revolution in Syria from her home in Chicago. Through the power of social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, Basatneh functions as the main person bringing the pieces of the revolution together on the internet. Be aware that this documentary shows graphic scenes of the violence and terrifying real footage of people outrunning snipers and blasts from the regimes army. I highly recommend this film for the understanding it provides in relation to the Syrian conflict and for the incredible young woman behind the scenes in the revolution.