This compilation video was created from scenes depicting AUC and its student, faculty, and campus in the AUC Historic Films collection. The video was created by RBSCL staff and displayed at Community Day in 2015
######, a 46 year old security guard at the American University in Cairo, gives his account of the 2011 revolution in Egypt. Based at AUC’s downtown Tahrir Square campus, for several days from January 25 into the second week of February 2011 he was assigned security shifts at the building at 5 Youssef El Guindi Street, a side street off Mohamed Mahmoud Street. During this time he tells of being able to “hear everything but see nothing,” and about the conversations he had with police officers stationed nearby. He reports on what the police had to say about the events at Tahrir Square, for example their not expecting significant demonstrations on January 25, and recalls meeting police officers who had not slept for four days after the 25th and who feared losing control of the protests. Some police officers and military personnel he spoke with revealed that they did not oppose the uprising against the government.
######, a 20-year old engineering student at Ain Shams University, describes his participation in Egypt’s revolutionary period. He states that he had been dissatisfied with the Mubarak regime, although he lacked any prior political affiliation nor had he participated in protests before 2011. Having followed events on social media, ######, at the time a teenage high school Thanaweya Amma student, he tells of joining the demonstrations on January 28, 2011, and standing at the front lines confronting the police and witnessing the kind of police and army brutality that he had been hearing of since childhood. When not protesting, he participated in a local ligan sha’abiyah watch group protecting his neighborhood. He also tells of participating in demonstrations against Ahmed Shafik, and states his opinion that the Supreme Council for the Armed Forces (SCAF) represented an extension of the Mubarak regime. He states his opposition to the demonstrations against President Mohamed Morsi on June 30, 2013, saying that Morsi should have been allowed to serve out his full term as a democratically-elected president, and decries the government’s violent response to pro-Morsi demonstrators in Rab’a and Nahda Squares. He also notes that he was against the election of Abdel Fattah El-Sisi as president, and mentions his plans to go abroad outside of Egypt after completing his studies.
"######a 23 year old graduate student and AUC alumnarelates her experience of the revolution in Egypt from 2011 and beyond. ###### speaks of taking part in the 18 days of demonstrations in Tahrir Squareusing particular banners as meeting points to join with friends. She describes aspects of the services at the Tahrir Square demonstrationsparticipation of AUC community membersand reports incidents of violence she observed. ###### compares these initial demonstrations with and later Friday protests against the army the Muslim Brotherhood in which she participated. She recalls how security conditions differed from one area to anotherdescribing the situation where she lived in Agouza and her brother’s participation in a neighborhood popular committee (ligan sha'biyya) in Mohandiseen. Differences in opinion were brought out by the revolutionaccording to ######giving the example of her best friend who was outside of Egypt and who was adamantly against the protests. She admits her misgivings about the parliamentary elections and constitutional referendumand offers her observations on Egypt’s political system and the difficulty of and long time required for reforming the country’s institutions like the military and police."
######, a 65 year-old artist, gives her account of her experience of the 2011 revolution in Egypt. She had taken part in student protests in 1972 in Alexandria and participated in other movements during the mid-1970s. Learning about the Tahrir protests from her children (who had been in-formed through Facebook), she participated in the 18 days of demonstrations, whose sense of community across diverse social classes, religions and ages she recalls. ###### also describes the clashes between protesters and security forces, having witnessed the attacks on protesters praying on Kasr El Nil bridge and a young man getting shot in the eye which resulted in her be-ing sprayed with blood. The interviewee comments on the safety situation and the efforts of young protestors to protect public property like the Egyptian Museum in Tahir Square. She also tells of her participation in a women’s march as well as the June and July 2013 protests in Tahrir Square. Also covered are her views on the Egyptian media coverage of the revolution up to the 2013 protests, and on Egyptian politics from President Mubarak’s removal through President Morsi’s ouster and the 2014 presidential elections.
######, a 39-year old faculty member teaching history at the American University in Cairo, describes her experience of the 2011 Egyptian revolution. ###### tells of learning about the protests via Facebook, observing marchers in the street on the first day, and then joining demonstrations at Mustafa Mahmoud Mosque Square, near her home in Mohandiseen, along with other friends and family who like herself had not previously been politically active. She also gives an account of attending the protests at Tahrir Square for several days, noting the sense of familiarity due to the presence of AUC community members and the location near the old campus, as well as concerns over reports about snipers shooting from the roofs of AUC buildings. ###### gives her observations on the role of the news media and social media, and tells about how the curfew and the closure of the university affected her. She discusses the effect of the revolution on AUC, including making students and other community members more politically aware and vocal about their rights, and how this influenced her teaching. ###### describes the demonstrations against the military and Muslim Brotherhood that took place after February 2011, including their limited impact, lack of direction, smaller numbers of attendees and generally reduced public interest. She relates her own participation in demonstrations like the one held for International Women’s Day in 2011 and other protests against sexual harassment, and speaks about the political campaigns, elections, and referenda that took place.
######, an American graduate student at the American University in Cairo, describes her experience of Egypt’s revolution of 2011-2012. A three-year resident of an apartment on Mohamed Mahmoud Street near Tahrir Square, ###### remained in Cairo after other foreign AUC students and neighbors departed. She attended the January and February 2011 protests at Tahrir Square daily, taking photographs and videos to document events for friends in the United States. ###### says friendships with activists offered insight into the role of young upper and middle class participants and Facebook and Twitter commentators, but highlights the important part played by the young and poor men fighting against state security forces. She emphasizes the spirit of unity despite the diversity of participants, and relates interactions with conservative Muslim men. ###### witnessed a number of violent incidents (including snipers shooting from the roof of AUC buildings) and noticed people infiltrating the university along with demonstrators protecting the campus and defending shops from looters. ###### also describes the role of the military on January 28 and beyond. She describes the medical field clinics set up to treat injured protesters and other organized aspects of the Tahrir demonstrations, such as the provision of food and a lost-and-found area. ###### offers the perspective of a foreigner active in the protests, mentioning her sense of inclusion and safety in Tahrir. Despite this she reports that on February 4, in the wake of state television broadcasts prompting suspicion of foreigners, she was arrested and turned over to the military police, repeatedly accused of espionage during her 20 hours of detention. ###### covers events after the initial 18 days, including the attack on Coptic Christians at Maspero in October 2011 and the December 2011 demonstrations against the Supreme Council for the Armed Forces (SCAF) that turned violent, and discusses activists’ tactics such as the Kazeboon movement to expose abuses by the military. ###### also joined women’s rights groups in anti-SCAF protests and other rights activism in late 2011 and early 2012. She critiques AUC’s support efforts for students during the uprising and addresses the impact of the revolution at the university, including strikes on campus, drawing a comparison with other schools in Egypt.
######, a 28 year old alumna of and graduate student at the American University in Cairo, recounts her experience of Egypt’s revolution of 2011. She describes conditions when she traveled around the city during the early days of the January uprising, and speaks of making and posting online on January 27 a “call to action” video with colleagues from the media production company where she worked. Feeling disconnected due to the internet and mobile telephone outage on January 28, ###### and her husband decided to go to the protests at Tahrir Square, but they drove back home before reaching the demonstrations due to a radio announcement about the curfew. ###### tells of attending the protests at Tahrir Square several times after January 30, 2011, including the day following Wael Ghoneim’s appearance on television. She observes that different social groups had their own spaces (“downtown artsy crowd, there was the Muslim Brotherhood corner, there was the salafi corner”) but interacted with each other, which permitted “putting a face to all of these unknowns,” breaking down stereotypes. According to ###### the atmosphere at the demonstrations was at times carnival-like, with the presence of vendors and families with young children and even pets. She recalls an “unspoken code of conduct” at the demonstrations, but her recollection of the jubilant scene around Tahrir Square at the announcement of President Mubarak’s departure is tempered by the sexual harassment she and friends experienced on February 11. ###### also mentions the burning of the homes of two people she knew who had political and economic ties to the Mubarak regime. ###### depicts the demonstrations that took place at Tahrir Square after the initial 18 days as having a different mood and organization from those of January and February 2011. She speaks about her participation in such events, including a women’s demonstration and the unrest on Mohamed Mahmoud Street in November 2011, contrasting the violence taking place there with the carnival atmosphere at the square. ###### emphasizes the special meaning of those spaces for members of the AUC community who had worked or studied on the campus nearby. She also assisted an Egyptian-American filmmaker who came to Cairo to document the revolution, providing contacts for activists and other figures involved in politics. ###### discusses her own participation in Egypt’s new electoral politics, including debating her voting choices with family members and others.
######, a 33-year old Egyptian filmmaker and photographer, tells of his experience of Egypt’s Revolution through 2011 and 2012, and discusses how it inspired artists and filmmakers. He mentions his participation in the demonstrations at Tahrir Square on January 25 and 28, 2011, in his words not as an artist but as an Egyptian. He characterizes the art produced after the revolution as part of the “train of change” launched on January 25, 2011, and speaks about his own work, intended to inspire others and promote change. This includes the documentary he filmed during the 2012 presidential election campaign, “Youm El Nasr” (Day of Victory). ###### describes the making of the film, which includes his interviews with people at Tahrir Square about their opinions of the elections and the candidates they supported, as well as footage of the celebrations that erupted when results were announced.
######, a 19 year old undergraduate student at the American University in Cairo, recounts his experiences during the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. He was in Kuwait when he learned that protests were planned, through friends’ posts on Facebook and by watching videos on YouTube. He had already returned to Egypt when the protests erupted, but did not go to Tahrir Square initially. He explains that the turnout increased on Friday the January 28 when students finished exams. According to ######, there was a “great spirit” in Tahrir throughout the 18 days with people from all walks of life helping each other, providing food, and securing the square. ###### describes patrolling his neighborhood for thugs and escaped criminals with a “ligan sha’abiyah” popular committee, and tells of encountering robbers. He singles out Mubarak’s speech on February 1 as the most pivotal point of the revolution, as it left people divided on when he should leave office; ###### himself thought it best for Mubarak to leave in September as he promised, in order to prevent violence and spare lives. He recalls the sense of pride and achievement among Egyptians after Mubarak was toppled, and how their attitudes – even those who were against the revolution – had grown more positive about Egypt’s future.
######, a 23 year old biomedical teaching assistant and musician, relates his experience of the 2011 revolution in Egypt. He describes the role of internet social media like Facebook (the We are Khaled Said page) and YouTube in prompting participation in the 18 Days of demonstrations in January and February 2011. He claims that online videos of police violence like the shooting of demonstrators prompted many to join the protests; the arrest of his close friend was the reason for his own participation, and he slept in Tahrir Square for almost a week. ###### discusses how individuals had to balance their family responsibilities with participating in the demonstrations, rotating between protesting at Tahrir Square and looking after the security of their families. ###### describes Tahrir Square as a place where music and other forms of artistic expression thrived, and speaks about two revolutionary songs he wrote and distributed online.
"Photographer's description: Pictures taken during the Egyptian Revolution. Text in image: ثروة المبارك (صحيفة الجارديان) – ثروة مبارك 15 مليار دولار – ثروة سوزان 3-5 مليار دولار – ثروة جمال 17 مليار دولار- ثروة علاء 8 مليار دولار- مجموع الثروة تقريبا 50 مليار دولار – الدين الخارجى 33 مليار دولار- الدين المحلى 123 مليار دولار – اذا الشعب يوما أراد الحياة فلابد أن يستجيب البقرمع الاعتذار لأبى القاسم الشابى .Translation of Text in image: Fortune of the Mubāraks (The Guardian Newspaper): -Mubārak 15 Billion Dollars -Suzanne 3-5 Billion Dollars -Gamal 17 Billion Dollars -Alaa 8 Billion Dollars Total of 50 Billion Dollars External debt: 30 Billion Dollars Local debt: 123 Billion Dollars . If one day the people want to live then the cows must obey with apologies to Abi Kassem Al Shaby."
'Photographer\'s description: This photo was taken before Mubarak\'s step downit shows a man holding a cross and the holy Qur\'antrying to express how Copts & Muslims are one hand against Mubarak because Mubarak\'s gang specially "NDP" were trying to make a sectarian strife between Muslims & Copts.'
"The demonstrators are waving Egyptian flags in Mīdān Victoria. Phototgraphers' description: photos and video of Jan 29-Feb 112011Protests (downtown) & celebration in Maadi."
"The demonstrators are waving Egyptian flags and lighting makeshift blow torches in Mīdān Victoria. Phototgraphers' description: photos and video of Jan 29-Feb 112011Protests (downtown) & celebration in Maadi."
"Photographer's description: over 1100 photos in Tahrir Square; Feb. 142011 to March 182011. Photographer's description: over 1100 photos in Tahrir Square; Feb. 142011. Text in image: Egypt's Today Is Better…Tomorrow Is The Best."
"Two of the boys are seated on the cart that is being pulled by a donkey. Photographer's description: Protestors before & after Mubarak and how they show happyphotos of Ahmed Shafik speaking at his place."
"Photographer's description: Pictures taken during the Egyptian Revolution. Text in image: (ارحل).Get Out; Get Out; Out. رمسيس Ramses. Translation of Text in image: Leave."
"Photographer's description: Pictures taken during the Egyptian Revolution. Text in image: عيش يتاكل - حرية - كرامة - انسانية. Translation of Text in image: Bread(edible)- Liberty- Human Dignity. Text in image on reverse: DEMOCRACY."
"Demonstrators in the crowd on the groud are making peace signs. Photographer's description: Pictures taken during the Egyptian Revolution. Text in image: مطالبنا: اسقاط الرئيس- حل مجلس الشعب و الشورى الزورين- انهاء حالة الطوارئ فورا- تشكيل حكومة وحدة وطنية انتقالية دستورية لاجراء انتخابات رئاسية- محاكمات فورية للمسئولين عن قتل شهداء الثورة- محاكمات عاجلة للفاسدين سارقى ثروات البلد. Translation of Text in image: Our Demands: Bring down the the President - Dissolutuon of the fraudful parliament and the Shurra Council - end the state of emergency immediately - to form a government of national unity and constitutional transition for presidential elections - Instant trials for those responsible for killing of the martyrs of the revolution - speedy trials for the corrupt thieves’ that stole the country's wealth."
Original art created in partial fulfillment of the course requirements for ARTV 200 Foundations of Design and Color in Spring 2011 at The American University in Cairo.
"Photographer's description: Pictures taken during the Egyptian Revolution. Text in image: مبارك SHIFT DEL. Translation of Text in image: Mubārak SHIFT DEL."
"Phototgraphers' description: photos and video of Jan 29-Feb 112011BOLLOCKS TO YOU MUBARAK WE Hate You. Translation of Text in image: Demanding the arrest of Mubārak the assasin and his gang."
######, a 41 year old maintenance supervisor on staff at the American University in Cairo, describes his experience of Egypt’s 2011 revolution. He tells of being responsible for managing the resumption of internet connections at the New Cairo campus, which had been cut due to the internet outage after January 28. ##### recounts attending the protests at Tahrir Square, and depicts the coexistence there of people from all segments of society, though he emphasizes the participation of educated young people. He mentions seeing Muslims and Christians sharing food, and did not observe women being harassed. What he saw convinced him to bring his children to the demonstrations at Tahrir Square, because he felt it was safe for them to attend. ###### recalls his doubts that President Mubarak would step down, and tells about driving around aimlessly in his car on the day before Mubarak’s departure, filled with pessimism. He notes that the revolution broke a barrier of fear in the Egyptian people and convinced them of their right to free expression, and discusses his hopes for the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections.
######, an air conditioning maintenance manager at the American University in Cairo, describes his experience in the January 25, 2011 revolution. He tells of his participation in the first four days of the revolution, including joining the demonstrations on January 25 when he was in Tahrir Square by chance, not originally knowing about the protests. During the remainder of the January and February revolution ###### served on his neighborhood “ligan sha’abiyah” watch group or popular committee. He recalls his doubts that the protests would succeed, lacking a leader or unified plan; President Mubarak’s departure surprised him, as did the brutality of the regime’s reaction. ###### explains how thefts committed against shops limited products available for purchase, and the difficulty in finding credible news sources (he felt the Al Jazeera channel overreacted and state television was inaccurate). According to ######, after the revolution AUC took the demands of its staff and students into greater consideration, and that “foreign students started looking differently at Egyptian students.” He also offers his views on the country’s future, including his misgivings about the value of continued protests.
######, a staff worker at the dormitories of the American University in Cairo, describes his experience of the 2011 Egyptian revolution. Fahd states that his political awareness developed during the AUC workers strike in 2010, and he offers his views about a lack of social justice and job opportunities in Egypt (using his brother’s situation as an example) under the old regime. He recalls attending the January 25 demonstration at Tahrir Square, where observed the participation of AUC students he recognized, after being informed that he did not have to report to work that day. According to ######, he served on the “ligan sha’abiyah” watch group in his neighborhood, Faisal, in response to rumors about escaped prisoners and thugs attacking people and property. ###### tells of witnessing an incident at the police station in Bulaq in which police officers and soldiers shot at people in the street from the roof a nearby hospital, causing several deaths. He also discusses how the formation of the independent workers syndicate at the university was a sign of the greater freedom of expression that emerged at AUC since the revolution.
######, a 28 year old public relations executive developing a political career, describes her experience of Egypt’s 2011 revolution. She discusses the first days of the revolution, such as the role of the “We are all Khaled Said” Facebook page in announcing the protests, and the clashes between protesters and security forces on the Kasr El Nil bridge on January 28 witnessed by her friends (including one who was shot and detained). ###### tells of attending demonstrations after January 28, describing the solidarity that existed despite socioeconomic, age, religion, and educational differences among protesters (“we were all the same in Tahrir Square”), comparing her own comfortable background to that of many of the other demonstrators. She describes the scene at Tahrir Square during the protests, including memorable signs (such as “Imshy Ba’a, Ayza Ahlaa” – “Please leave, I need to shave”), and recalls the incident when poet and activist Abdel Rahman Youssef got on stage and called on the families of protesters to join the protests against President Mubarak. She addresses the rumors that spread during the 18 days, the coverage by Egyptian state media, the role of social media, and the impact of the internet and mobile telephone outages. Her continued participation in demonstrations after February is also covered, and she offers her opinion that had the protesters remained in Tahrir Square after Mubarak’s departure, their presence would have served as a check on the role of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. ###### speaks of her contacts with activists and organizers for several political parties (including that of Mohamed El Baradei), and her own work with the “El-Adl” (Justice) party during the period leading up to parliamentary elections. This interview was conducted as part of the interviewer’s coursework in Professor Nancy Gallagher’s Fall 2011 History 412 “Methods of Oral History and the Egyptian Revolution” course.
######, an undergraduate student at the American University in Cairo, describes her experience of the 2011 Egyptian revolution. ###### followed the events of the revolution via television news and the internet from Japan, where she was taking part in a study abroad program; she also discusses later coverage of events like the October 2011 violence at Maspero. She indicates the challenges of staying in touch with family and friends and for remaining connected to the events of the revolution from overseas, especially during the internet outage in Egypt. ###### recalls her reactions to various events, including a friend’s detention by security forces. She also recounts the debates and differences of opinion about the revolution taking place online and within her family and circle of friends, and conditions for her family living in the Al Rehab residential compound. The impact of the revolution at AUC is also covered.
######, a 37 year old staff member in the American University in Cairo’s library, describes his experiences during Egypt’s 2011 revolution. He relates witnessing the looting and burning of the police station in Moqattam, his neighborhood, on January 25. Although aware of many Egyptians’ discontent with their government, he did not expect the protests of early 2011; he comments on the course of the revolution, emphasizing the importance of the first three days and the early participants. According to ######, the revolution served as a unifying force for the university’s student body in a way that he had never seen before.
######, a medical doctor in public health in her 40s and editor of the book ###### describes her experience of Egypt’s 2011 revolution. Learning of the January 25 demonstrations through the We are All Khaled Said Facebook page, she returned from France to participate in the protests and took part in most of the days of protests at Tahrir Square prior to President Mubarak’s departure. ###### characterized the demonstrations as a time when “it was as if everything good in the Egyptian character was present in those eighteen days in the Square.” She depicts Tahrir Square as a place where the “complete cross-section of Egyptian society” gathered, with interactions among Muslims and Christians and Egyptians of different social classes. She states that in preparing her book ###### which featured images of signs people held at the demonstrations, she “very carefully tried to pick photographs that showed the different ranges of people who were there,” in terms of socioeconomic class or dress. ###### gives a portrait of the scale of the crowds at Tahrir and describes the organized communal services, like the media tent, nurseries, medical clinics, and food and blanket distribution. She tells of the volunteers providing security at the entrances to Tahrir Square, contrasting this with her experiences of being questioned several times by soldiers when trying to enter the Square with her camera. ###### stresses the importance of internet bloggers and details her own use of social media in staying informed as an alternative to news media outlets. She discusses the diversity in opinion about the revolution, and how that complicated subsequent social interactions. ###### mentions significant events (some violent) from February through November 2011, as well as the developing mood of apathy and disappointment that contrasted with the hope, unanimity, and cooperation of the original demonstrations.
"Photographer's description: Photos and videos taken in Tahrir Square from 1st Feb./4th Feb./6th Feb./8th Feb./10th Feb./11th Feb./18th Feb./ and so on. Text in Image: مؤهلات مبارك: 1. دبلومة فى البرود 2. دكتوراه فى الخيانة.3. ماجيستير فى البطاله 4. زماله فى تعذيب المواطن 5. شهاده معتمدة من سجون ابو غريب 6. زماله فى المحسوبية 7. زماله الاعتقالات السياسيه 8. صديق وفى لإسرائيل 9. عميل أمين للأمريكان 10. يتحدث العبرية بطلاقه 11. خائن للوحده العربيه 12. منتهى الصلاحية. Translation of text in image: Mubārak's qualifications: 1. Diploma in coldness 2. Ph. D. in treason 3. Master's in unemployment 4. Fellowship in torture 5. Certificate approved by Abu Ghraib Prison 6. Fellowship in favoritism 7. Fellowship in political arrests 8. Good friend to Israel 9. A loyal spy to the Americans 10. Speaks Hebrew fluently 11. Traitor to the Arab unity 12. Expired."
"Photographer's description: Pictures taken during the Egyptian Revolution. Text in image: مستعد لعلاج مبارك من الزهايمر و فصام بارانويا - امضاء استشارى نفسية بالعباسية . Translation of Text in image: Willing to treat Mubārak for Alzheimer's and Paranoia- signed by a psychiatrist in Al ʻAbbāsīyah."