"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 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 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.
######, 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 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.
"######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."