When I set up a reading group,it brought young Egyptians labelled ‘leftist’, ‘secular’ and ‘Islamist’ together. Through our meetings we overcame these artificial divisions Lisez cet article en français, and iciIn November 2011 during a protest on Mohamed Mahmoud street in downtown Cairo,a friend asked me if I would start a reading group for some politically engaged young people. I answered that I had read and disliked Reading Lolita in Tehran and so had no interest in imitating its protagonist, who had set up a book club in her domestic and encouraged the members to read and discuss western literature as the means to emancipation. My friend had not understood what I’d meant and so I conceded. Related: Cairo citizens caught between Isis violence and Abdel Fatah al-Sisi’s draconian security crackdowns I suggested that we fill a separate group for women so that they would be more at ease. They declined politelyContinue reading...
Source: theguardian.com