20121022 interview

              Transcript of oral history interview conducted with
###### on October 22, 2012, for the
University on the Square: Documenting Egypt’s 21st Century Revolution project

Interviewer: 
This is an oral history interview for the American University in Cairo's University on the Square, Documenting Egypt's 21st Century Revolution Project.  The interviewee is ###### and the interviewer is ######. The date is October 22nd, 2012 and we are in the Main Building radio station.  All right could you please give your name and title?

Interviewee: 
Yeah.  My name is ######. I am a teacher assistant at Higher Technological Institute, Biomedical Engineering Department.  

Interviewer: 
Beautiful.  And when and how did you learn about the demonstrations of January 25th 2011?

[00:00:38]

Interviewee:
 It was like before revolution comes by a week, okay, I have just listened that, uh, through our friends on Facebook that it will be a protests, okay, and that we have to be all gathered, to go and ask to get our rights and demands. So, it was a little bit weird you know, that how you guys - do you know that this system, if you are going to protest against it, they will punish you and how are you thinking to do something like that.  So we all weren't like believing that something would - will be happened. That we will go and will continue through the night or the protesters will continue be like for one hour or two hours but it has been continued to an 18 days, not only one hour or two hours.  And just.

[00:01:42]

Interviewer:
 Alright.  And had you been involved in demonstrations or like any type of political organizing before the revolution?

Interviewee:
 No.

Interviewer: 	
Alright.  Can you tell about your involvement like what sort of things you participated in or you observed while you were in the Square, like how did you went or things like that?
Interviewee: 
What makes me like or what made me to move - it was one of my friends. Okay, when he has been arrested since the first day, so he was like a very close friend to me, and since I have hear that, he has been arrested and I know him very well, he's a good person. He cannot do anything bad to be arrested. That motivated me to go and ask what happened, you know. So I think most people had the same case. That what motivated them to go and ask about their friends and their brothers, their sisters what happened you know, and then we have to ask, and we have to go to the Square and go to the present places and protesting front of it.

[00:02:51]

When we did it, you found that the government has resisted, you know, in a very bad way. So we discovered that we were living with like a foolish system, okay, which we were sleeping all the time, just away from political stuff and away from the people that they have no, the people that they didn't get all their rights. So, we had discovered that we have to move, at that time. So, what we did like most of the Egyptian guys, what they did, they went to the Square, they protested, they were helping like other friends, while the policemen came and did shoot the guys. So, to help going to the hospitals, and to help them buy food and money, that was it, yes. 

Interviewer: 
So, like how often did you go - were you there everyday or like?

[00:03:53]

Interviewee: 
I went and slept in the Tahrir Square for almost six days. Okay. It was separate days. Because like it was that you have two duties, at this time.  Okay.  All people like left their jobs and their works, their schools, their universities and they were just between Square and their homes. So, we were serving like at two places, you have to serve your family because like if you have parents old, old papa or old mama  you know, so you have to be for them and to give or just to help them buy food and all these stuffs.  Almost at that time, some of the bad people through the old system, they were just scaring people that there are thugs in the streets and all this stuff, so they have to be beside your family when you hear about something like that.  So, it was very hard for me, for you know, just to be okay, today in the Tahrir Square, while your brothers are at the same - at your home, beside your family, you know, and then you can exchange, they go to the Tahrir Square and you back home, just to be, to feel that they are safe. 

[00:05:00]

So it was most Egyptian guys like that. I see that, the people who were in the Tahrir Square and the people who are the sides of family, they were at the same level, you know, because they here protecting their families.  And you are protection also their families and their rights and their - so it was like a big circle, which all serve each others.

Interviewer: 
Wow. Okay. And like do you know how the demonstrations were organized like, how did it even, I know, you said Facebook but like what - like all -
 


Interviewee: 
Yeah. I would like to say that, social media, it was the one of heroes, you know, at revolution. Yes. Why?  Because it's like - it's a very easy way to spread the word, you know, while you say it, okay, I am going to hang out today with my friends going to which cinema or going to watch a movie at the cinema. So you will find like, five or six friends, say, I am going to catch you, I am going to catch you, and so on, okay. 

[00:06:00]

So something like revolution when some guys, it was like, Kullena Khaled Said Fan Page.  Okay. They say, that it will be a revolution, or it will be a protesting next 25th of January, we are just going to protest, to get our rights and ask for our rights.  So, like few people, okay, guys, we are going to catch you because we feel that, we need the same rights, which you are going to ask for. So, I see it was mainly from Facebook, social media, you know, and after that, you know, still people at their homes and they didn't go to protests but when they just watched the uploaded videos on YouTube, so this social media, when they just watched these videos, which policemen like shoot guys, shoot guys in the streets, in a very bad way.  

[00:07:00]

So they motivated just to go and see this is you know, this is something like this is the foolish action.  So, like YouTube and Twitter and Facebook, so it was all social media, it's a very easy way to spread the word to say how we are going to plan and that's why the government did cut the internet you know, through the revolution but it was like you know, Egyptian people they can resist very well.  For example, you said, I wouldn't - I will cut the internet, okay, we will go freely in the streets.  Okay.  And can't plan without going to the internet, so they have many ways, to just to get their targets, if you were like - like just wanted to stop something they want to do, so they will do that, just - 

Interviewer: 
Okay.  Also can you like give - oh, no, no. Did you have any contacts with any of like really important people that are involved in protest, like did you meet any people that were like, the leaders of the - or like really prominent-

[00:08:05]

Interviewee: 
You see like Wael Ghoneim?

Interviewer: 
Yeah, yeah yeah, did you meet-

Interviewee: 
Yes, we have met many of these guys because they were really at the Square at the same time, and after the revolution, they did organize many events, just to say okay guys, let's do - let's go back and rebuild our countries and all these come through many initiatives you know, so yes we did meet uh-



Interviewer: 
And like, I know that you were really like involved in like the arts like side of it, like did you meet lot of other people that were like doing performing and like -

[00:08:42]

Interviewee: 
Yeah, yeah, Tahrir Square, it wasn't only just for protesting. It was like a part of many artistic fields or many other artistic pieces, like you can find people singing, you can find people playing music, you can find people, maybe do something like sketches you know like-

Interviewer: 
	Acting?

Interviewee: 
You know acting and all these stuff.  So, all people just saw at that time, that Tahrir Square is each’s home, you know like so we are going to do what we do in our homes, exactly.  So they did it.  Well, for me, I did like sang two songs and it's officially on the YouTube. One of them it's called ###### and other one it's called, ######. It was about revolution. The first one, it means that for anything like someone of someone which is something like, he’s person who's unknown, you know, he is unknown person but when you hear - when you listen to the song, you think that you are this - you are the same person who were at this time and another one who will listen to the same song will remember that he was the same person also.  So, it's like - remind you what all happens at the Square at that time. Under the name someone of someone like ######.

[000:10:13]

Interviewer: 
Okay.  Also I have like five more questions, what time-

[000:10:22]


[End of interview]