For one Lyndon State College professor, the recent protests in Egypt became a first-hand experience.
Alia Thabit, an instructor of composition and dance and a member of LSC’s English department, spent two weeks in Egypt this January attending a dance retreat. Thabit spent part of her time in Cairo and on a boat journey from Luxor to Aswan.
Thabit arrived in Aswan just as the protests against Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak were taking place. Thabit described the demonstrations on the nights of Jan. 28 and 29 as very chaotic and added that there was “a lot of tear gas” being used by police. By the next day, the situation had calmed down considerably, Thabit said.
Despite the turmoil around her, Thabit said that she never felt unsafe. She said that several times she was on the streets during the protests, but Egyptian citizens escorted her out of harm’s way. Thabit said she also felt safe knowing that the protestors were focused on their president, not on her and her companions.
“We never felt that there was any hostility directed toward us,” Thabit said.
Thabit’s situation was complicated by the fact that she was teaching an online section of ENG 1052, Exposition and Analysis. She said that the Egyptian government shut down the Internet as well as mobile phone service the night of Jan. 26, but she did not realize what had happened until two days later.
Thabit said she was able to contact her students by telephoning her colleague, Erin Narey. Narey informed English Composition coordinator Andrea Luna, who posted updates and news articles about what was happening in Egypt to Thabit’s students.
Thabit praised her students and the staff at LSC for their help and perseverance.
“Everyone at Lyndon is on top of things,” Thabit said.
In addition to shutting down the Internet, the SMS network, and the mobile phone network in Cairo, the Egyptian government also stopped all trains and flights to and from Cairo, delaying Thabit’s return. Thabit said an Egyptian friend was eventually able to get her on a charter flight to Cairo. Thabit flew to Cairo on Feb. 2 and back to the U.S. the next day.
“I am honored to be a witness to this historic event,” Thabit said. She added that everyone she met in Egypt was very happy when they learned she was an American and often said things like, “Oh my God, I love America. I wish Obama were our president.”
Thabit said that the Egyptian people wanted Obama to make a stronger statement in support of their protests. She added that many people in the Middle East like America and wish we would do more to help them create genuine freedom in their own countries, instead of supporting dictators simply because it is convenient for us.
“They want us to acknowledge their need and be there for them,” Thabit said.
Thabit is currently in New York City participating in a play about the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten. She also is continuing to teach ENG 1052 online. The online course is part of LSC’s Moodle pilot program. LSC is in the process of switching its online portal provider from Blackboard to Moodle.
Thabit said she does a lot of traveling and is grateful to be able to be part of the LSC community in spite of this.
“I feel very, very fortunate,” she said.