I’m sure one of my peers has mentioned it on this blog already, but in case they haven’t- a faluka ride is one of the most serene experiences in Cairo. Any boat ride is calming, a respite that can be hard to find in this city, but the fact that this specific boat ride is on the river we’ve grown up reading about and that people have been in awe of for generations, it just never gets old. It kind of reminds you of your presence there, something like the opposite of an out-of-body experience. I’m not entirely sure if that makes sense.
DukeEngage has a strong relationship with the American University of Cairo, particularly with a professor named Brooke. She’s already had us over to her apartment twice now for various lectures and invited us to this particular faluka ride, our 3rd, to meet some of her summer students. I have heard some pretty accusatory stereotypes about AUC students and I don’t feel particularly inclined to take them at face value, but one thing is for sure- they’re not your everyday Egyptians. The fact of the matter is that in this country you have to be wealthy to go to AUC. I’ve heard things like the Egyptians students there don’t really live in Egypt or have a completely sheltered and unrealistic understanding of what the country is like. Honestly, I never really asked them what they think about President Mubarak or how to solve poverty in Egypt; we stuck to more kosher (or should I say halaal?) subjects like music and school. So I really couldn’t tell you how grounded they are. They were obviously more well-off than most Egyptians we have encountered so far, but they also seemed like intelligent and capable students. I think a fortunate background is no reason to harbor animosity towards or lay blame on someone, which I suspect is a strong influence on the development of the stereotypes I’ve mentioned. The group was very friendly and we’ve planned to meet up again sometime soon for dinner. I intend to have more substantial conversations with them then and I hope that they will, insha’allah, show me a different AUC student from the one I have been hesitant to accept.
"They were obviously more well-off than most Egyptians we have encountered so far, but they also seemed like intelligent and capable students. I think a fortunate background is no reason to harbor animosity towards or lay blame on someone, which I suspect is a strong influence on the development of the stereotypes I’ve mentioned."
ReplyDeleteWow! This just jumps off the page. This statement could just as easily be applied to Duke students!!! Try this altered sentence from your entry:
"I’ve heard things like [Duke students] don’t really live in [the real world] or have a completely sheltered and unrealistic understanding of what the country is like."
This is not meant as a criticism - I love you guys and am proud of you all - but rather as something to think about. Just as the AUC students are considered in their country either as the privileged elite, or distant, out of touch elitists, depending on your perspective, so too can Duke students be considered in this positive or negative light. It is interesting to think about what responsibilities and burdens those privileged AUC students bear toward their country and what they will do with the extraordinary (at least by Egyptian standards) opportunity to study at such a high level. Maybe that's one of the lessons you can take home with you after your DukeEngage summer is over...
please add an occasional pic so we can better experience (virtually) through your blogs...keep them coming.
ReplyDeleteAww, we would love to put pictures up! Unfortunately, our internet is still pretty bad - when we get our eventual high-speed internet, we'll add plenty of photos for everyone!
ReplyDeleteHi Maheen--Anonymous makes a good point above, I think. Its worth thinking about a bit more deeply on a couple of counts: First--while there is a public perception that Duke students are rich, privileged and have sheltered or unrealistic understandings of the how things are, and it IS true of some Duke students, it is not true of ALL Duke students. There is rich territory for thinking about engagement here: Assuming the current batch of DukeEngagers is a mix of more & less privileged students--how do those differences affect the experiences you're having as DukeEngagers? How do things like different backgrounds and difference degrees of race/gender/class/religious or sexual privilege affect how you all understand, interpret, and respond to your DukeEngage placements and work?
ReplyDeleteAlso--if civic engagement, service, and working for social justice are important--why are they? Why should we do them? How should we do them? Do these answers differ if you're from a privileged group? How do we even understand privilege in a global economy.