Tag: Egypt

Democracy 101 For Egypt

SEPT 12, 2011

Tonight’s class at the School for Politics, in the Egyptian Democratic Academy (EDA), focuses on socialism versus liberalism and the meaning of a civil state. The students are men and woman in their 20s or beyond, who’ve arrived at the end of their work or university day to spend the next four hours on a balcony turned classroom. The heat is only occasionally broken by a single rotating fan, and the noise from the traffic below is relentless. But no one seems to mind, and all eyes are on Esraa Nouh, the 25-year-old teacher. She wants to know: what have her students heard about liberalism?  [full story]

David Degner & Alia Malek in Cairo: Permanent Revolution

JULY 20, 2011

On July 8th, Egyptians returned to Tahrir Square to remind the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) that it was they – the people – and not the generals that would be the guardians of the Revolution, even if the fall of Hosni Mubarak was made easier by the military’s abandoning of the Dictator.  As of today, they have not left Tahrir.

Tents shelter folks as they sleep or discuss Egypt’s past, present, and future late into the night and early into the morning.  The canvas surfaces also provide space to display slogans, party and coalition names, and political demands.  The giant canopy overhead shields all from a sun that has been as steadfastly present as the revolutionaries.  [full story]