Egypt crisis

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February 11, 2011 | 2:38 PM | By

‘It kind of took me by surprise:’ Egyptian American voices

Photo by Leslie Berestein Rojas/KPCC

Patrons watched Al Jazeera updates from Egypt last night at the Nubia Cafe in Anaheim, February 10, 2011

Last night, in one of the crowded hookah lounges that dot an Anaheim neighborhood known as Little Arabia, I came across a table of Egyptian immigrants tensely watching Al Jazeera via satellite, a group of friends grumbling over a shared smoke and many cups of hibiscus tea.

They were angry and frustrated, having hoped for a resignation announcement from Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak yesterday that turned, instead, into a declaration that he planned to stay in power. But not for long. This morning, those who had managed to sleep awoke to the news they had hoped for: Amid mounting protests, with hundreds of thousands crowding Cairo’s Tahrir Square and unrest throughout Egypt, Mubarak finally resigned, ceding power to the military.

Since then, I’ve caught up with several of the same people I spoke with last night. Today is a new day, they said, and they are elated. For some, mixed in with the joy is a bit of fear of the unknown, magnified by distance as they watch the country they grew up in, and where many of their loved ones still live, begin the difficult transition toward what they hope will be genuine democracy.

But they’re hoping for the best. Some of their thoughts:

Even though we were looking forward to this moment, it kind of took me by surprise. I was expecting him (Mubarak) to give up power, basically, but not that soon. After he delegated some of his power to the vice president, (I thought) that he might stay or try to stay to see how it plays out for maybe another week.

But it seems he looked at the big picture and finally, according to his calculations, found out that he would be out no matter when. He decided to cut it short. Obviously, the country was going into a complete hole.

I am optimistic in that we will see real democracy finally being practiced in Egypt. On the other hand, I am skeptical, because the rigged parliament is still in place. It’s not right to have the same people be deciding the future of the country.

I definitely wish I was there. Last night, they (my friends) were talking about seriously trying to get there quickly, like flying out today or tomorrow. And I said that unfortunately, I had my calendar full for the whole month.

- Ahmed Elzarie, 52, of Buena Park, a freelance interpreter who has lived in the U.S. for 21 years

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FILED UNDER: Culture/Identity, Politics/Justice, Egypt crisis, Egyptian Americans, Egyptian revolution
February 11, 2011 | 12:39 PM | By

American snapshot: Egyptian pride in Anaheim

Photo by Shirley Jahad/KPCC

Mohamad Said celebrates outside a bakery on Brookhurst Avenue in Anaheim, a stretch dubbed the "Gaza Strip" for its many businesses catering to Middle Eastern immigrants. February 11, 2011

Said, 28, told KPCC reporter Shirley Jahad this morning that his family was in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, and that “the biggest flag of Egypt is in his heart.”

FILED UNDER: Culture/Identity, Economy, Politics/Justice, Egypt crisis, Egyptian Americans
February 11, 2011 | 9:40 AM | By

‘Yes we can and we did it:’ Egypt supporters react on Facebook

Photo by Asim Bharwani/Flickr (Creative Commons)

Since news broke earlier this morning of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak’s resignation after 18 days of protests that have spread around the country, people have been posting comments on the many Facebook pages that have sprung up in support of the demonstrators.

Here are just a few:

From Support the Egyptian Revolution 2011:

D-Nitikka Hoyer: The people did it they stayed strong even when told to leave always stand on truth

From I Support the Egyptian People:

Rosa Saied: MABRUK MASR!!!!!! IM SO HAPPY FOR ALL THE PEOPLE THERE.. BYE BYE MUBARAK UR TIME IS DONE NOW.

Aatish Shah: MUBARAK OUT, ARMY IN !! Chearzzz Hoodies (:

From Support the Egyptian People and Democracy in Egypt:

Mohamed Ahmed Abdallah: can’t believe it …congrats Egypt .. it’s time to shine .. it’s time for change ..it’s time for real democracy ..it’s your time now ….we finally made it !!! Husny mubarak down !!

Seseme Ali: thank you tunisia thank you khaled saeid thank you wael ghoneem and group than you aljazeera from the heart thank you honest people from the whole world thanks god!!!!!!

And from Scuba Divers in Support of Egyptian Union and Peace, partly administered out of Dahab on the Red Sea and partly out of Europe:

Zizo Zi: Yes we can and we did it :)

FILED UNDER: Culture/Identity, Politics/Justice, Egypt crisis, Egyptian Americans
February 9, 2011 | 2:42 PM | By

Young Egyptian Americans identify with crisis from afar

LA’s Egyptians mobilized with protesters at home from 89.3 KPCC on Vimeo.

KPCC interns Cecilia Gregoriades and Faun Kime went out last weekend and spoke with a couple of younger Egyptian Americans, including a young woman from a half-Egyptian family who still identified closely with anti-government protesters in Egypt. Like their parents, these young people are closely monitoring the crisis from here.

The unrest in Cairo and elsewhere is well into its third week, with tension escalating between the protesters calling for democratic reforms and the Egyptian military. There have also been clashes between anti-government protesters and those who support president Hosni Mubarak, a close ally of the United States who has ruled for 30 years and is considered a dictator by many. According to Human Rights Watch, at least 297 people are known to have died in the violence.

FILED UNDER: Culture/Identity, Politics/Justice, Egypt crisis, Egyptian Americans
February 7, 2011 | 8:51 AM | By

As many Egyptian Angelenos rally for reforms, others are hesitant

Photo by Adolfo Guzman-Lopez/KPCC

Ezabelle Attallah, a member of the mostly Egyptian-immigrant Holy Virgin Mary Coptic Orthodox Church in northeast Los Angeles.

For a second weekend in a row, Egyptian Americans in Los Angeles joined protesters in other U.S. cities to rally in solidarity with protesters in Egypt demanding that president Hosni Mubarak step down.

USC’s Neon Tommy posted a slide show of photos from Saturday’s rally outside the federal building in West Los Angeles, which drew hundreds. Another crowd gathered Sunday outside the Egyptian Consulate (video of the rally, above, via JewishJournal.com).

Those attending the local rallies are calling for democratic reforms in Egypt and the end of three decades of rule by Mubarak, a close ally of the United States who in his country is considered a tyrant by many. But one group of Egyptian Coptic Christians in Los Angeles is saying not so fast, fearful that a sudden overturning of Mubarak’s government might bring about changes that could put the country’s Christian minority at risk.

KPCC’s Adolfo Guzman Lopez visited the Egyptian immigrant members of Holy Virgin Mary Church in Highland Park, where about 500 families attend services in Arabic and English.

From the story:

Odette Morcos drove from Glendale for the 6:30 Sunday morning service. Like others here, she’s been glued to her TV set watching the turmoil in her homeland. President Hosni Mubarak should leave, she says, but not immediately, as many back home demand.

“I want Hosni Mubarak to stay for the next eight months until fix everything,” said Morcos.

Morcos and other members of this parish are worried that without Mubarak, there will be chaos that will benefit Muslim extremists. Last month a suicide bomber killed 21 people outside a Christian church in Alexandria.

The unrest in Egypt is entering its third week. Close to a dozen people have reportedly been killed so far, according to the country’s health ministry, and nearly a thousand have been injured.

UPDATE: U.S.-based Human Rights Watch says at least 297 people have been killed since Egypt’s anti-government uprising began two weeks ago, with many deaths outside Cairo as violence has spread. CNN cited a much lower government figure a few days ago.

FILED UNDER: Culture/Identity, Politics/Justice, Egypt crisis, Egyptian Americans
February 2, 2011 | 10:05 PM | By

American snapshot: West L.A., January 29

Photo by Asim Bharwani/Flickr (Creative Commons)

A woman holds an Egyptian flag as the car she's in passes a protest in front of the federal building in West Los Angeles last Saturday, January 29, 2011

I came across photographer Asim Bharwani’s terrific Flickr photostream this week while searching for photos of Saturday’s Egyptian solidarity rally in front of the federal building in West Los Angeles, organized by Egyptian Americans from Southern California.

While I chose a different color-drenched photo of the local protesters for my posts, I loved this pair’s quintesentially Angeleno approach to the rally. Bharwani titled it “Egyptian drive-by.”

Bharwani also posts occasionally on his modenadude.com blog.

FILED UNDER: Culture/Identity, Egypt crisis, Egyptian Americans, West Los Angeles
February 2, 2011 | 12:42 PM | By

For some Egyptian Americans, the revolution will be Facebooked

Photo by Asim Bharwani/Flickr (Creative Commons)

An Egypt solidarity rally, partly organized on Facebook, outside the federal building in West Los Angeles Saturday, January 29, 2011

Social media has played a remarkable role not only in how Egyptians used it to coordinate the anti-government protests that are now in their ninth day, but in how the world has witnessed, relayed information, and organized around the crisis.

Stories have ranged from the ways in which Egyptians finagled ways around a government shutdown of Internet and cellular access to continue using Twitter and Facebook to how a UCLA graduate student, employing a network of acquaintances in Egypt and old-fashioned telephone land lines, relayed eyewitness updates via Twitter @Jan25Voices.

Among Egyptian Americans, Facebook has played a big role in communicating, commiserating and organizing around the protests, as many have done in recent days to stage solidarity rallies in Los Angeles and other U.S. cities. Many of the Facebook pages dedicated to the Egypt crisis are administered out of the United States (where they tend to be pro-demonstrator).

Here’s a sampling:

  • Society of Egyptian Americans – (SEA) This page, representing an immigrant organization based in Southern California, played a part in the organizing of a rally in West Los Angeles last weekend. Posted Jan. 28: “We are inviting you to attend media and all others to attend in unity to support our cause against the current Egyptian Government. Saturday January 29th at the Federal Building.”
  • Egyptian Diaspora in Support of Demonstrators in Egypt – Jan 25 & Beyond It’s not clear from the page where it’s administered, but posts call for Egyptian Americans to rally and call U.S. political representatives. From the description: “This is a page dedicated to Egyptians living abroad to network and share ideas in support of the January 25 uprising.” On the discussion page one man asks, “Are there any peaceful demonstrations in Miami Florida?”
  • Support the Egyptian Revolution A page administered out of Tallahassee, FL. The description reads: “To all the world, please Support the Egyptian revolution against injustice. This Revolution will be the largest in the Middle East to democratic rule in Egypt and the Middle East and the (w)hole world.” Many of the comments are in Arabic. Continue reading →
FILED UNDER: Culture/Identity, Politics/Justice, Egypt crisis, Egyptian Americans, Facebook
January 31, 2011 | 4:34 PM | By

An Egyptian American blogger’s take on the crisis through two different lenses

Photo by Asim Bharwani/Flickr (Creative Commons)

A Egyptian solidarity demonstration outside the federal building in West Los Angeles on Saturday, January 29, 2011

The blog Muslim Matters has an interesting post from a second-generation Egyptian American who was born in the United States but raised in the Egyptian port city of Alexandria, giving him unique perspective on the anti-government demonstrations rocking Egypt.

It’s been a week since the start of protests in the capital city of Cairo, with thousands of people clogging the streets to demand democratic reforms and the resignation of president Hosni Mubarak, a close ally of the United States but regarded by many in his country as a dictator.

Identified as Haytham, the author, a 28-year-old activist and graduate student who lives in New Mexico and occasionally posts on the site, contrasts his reaction as an Egyptian to the crisis with how it is viewed, he writes, “through an American lens.”

From his take “through an Egyptian lens,” he writes:

The Egyptian government has been relying on fear to rule its people with an iron fist.

The fear has now been lifted.

I spent 13 years of my life in Egypt and I understand this fear – a nagging worry that one might be detained indefinitely with no court date or legal representation. Almost every Egyptian is aware of such horror stories, people jailed due to “civil-disobedience” or other politically-driven charges. Even with this backdrop, Egyptians are standing up to make their voices heard.

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FILED UNDER: Culture/Identity, Politics/Justice, Egypt crisis, Muslims