7 Years Ago, This Was Egypt: Remembering the 25 January Revolution

Seven years have passed since Egyptians took to the streets to demand to be treated with dignity and respect by their leaders. In one of the most momentous few weeks in the history of the country and the region, the Egyptian people, by uniting in their indignation against unchecked rule and unbearable living conditions, they were able to overthrow the 30-year rule of the nation’s president. On January 25, 2011, people gathered in the country’s squares and alleys, streets and boulevards, until, 18 days later, on February 11, President Hosni Mubarak announced in a televised address that he was stepping down.

Since then, those 18 days have been re-told by the people who were there; they have been made into films and documentaries, mythologized in books and magazines, analyzed in academic journals, and debated in coffee shops and around dinner tables over music.

Much has happened during these past years. Some say that the horizon of Egyptians’ imaginations has widened, that enabled them to envision a future where they would play a more active role in determining the direction of the country. Others argue that the 18 days were the darkest time in Egypt’s history, a conspiracy by foreign agents wishing to bring down the state and the people.

Seven years have passed, the political leadership has changed, established norms are being questioned and discussed, while life on Egyptian streets goes on.

The January 25 Revolution was a call for change. Although many would say that such a change has yet to materialize in the everyday of ordinary citizens, those 18 days are still a cherished, albeit painful, memory for those who participated, or even for those who followed events from afar.

Today, on the seventh anniversary of the Rising, Egyptian Streets wishes to honour the martyrs of the revolution and all those who gathered in the public spaces of Egypt’s cities and villages in a collective effort to reclaim their rights to bread, freedom and social justice.