Nadeen Ashraf

Nadeen Ashraf, Arabic: نادين اشرف, (born 1998) is an Egyptian feminist activist. Her use of social media instigated the #MeToo movement within Egypt. She is part of the BBC's 100 Women of 2020 list.  

Nadeen Ashraf
Nadeen Ashraf at a discussion panel at the American University in Cairo’s event series Speak Up addressing sexual harassment in universities across Egypt
Born
نادين اشرف

March 12, 1998
Cairo
CitizenshipEgypt
EducationAmerican University in Cairo
OccupationStudent; Activist
Known forInsitigating the #MeToo movement in Egypt
AwardsBBC's 100 Women, Equality Now’s Changemaker Award presented by Gucci

Biography

Ashraf was born in Cairo in 1998.[1] Her father is a software developer and her mother is a nutritionist.[1] As of 2020 she was studying Philosophy and Political Science at the American University in Cairo.[1] On the night of 1 July 2020, Ashraf set up an Instagram account page named "Assault Police", which was the first public platform to enable Egyptian women to have a voice in the #MeToo movement.[1] In a 2013 poll, 99% of Egyptian women said they were survivors of sexual assault.[2]

The "Assault Police" Instagram account was initially set up by Ashraf to provide a platform for women who had experienced sexual assault and rape to make their experiences public.[2] The account played a prominent role in uncovering the case of the harasser and alleged rapist, Ahmed Bassam Zaki, who was sentenced to three years in prison for online sexual harassment charges in December 2020.[3] This high profile case caused public figures and organisations in Egypt, such as Cairo's Al-Alzhar Mosque, to speak out against rape and sexual violence.[4] The "Assault Police" account's content expanded from whistle-blowing to express general concerns about sexual violence, as well as to educate and provide resources to women.[1] It has also spurred other movements and encouraged other women to speak out against sexual harassment, such as students at the Higher Film Institute of Egypt.[5]

At the end of 2020, Ashraf was planning to evolve the Instagram account to a full-time organization that can support survivors in a variety of ways: from helping them contact professionals to offering them legal assistance and therapy..[6]

Awards

In 2020, Ashraf was listed as one of the BBC's 100 Women of the year.[7][8] She was also awarded the Changemaker Award at the Equality Now Virtual Gala, sponsored by Gucci.[9]

References
  1. Walsh, Declan (2020-10-02). "The 22-Year-Old Force Behind Egypt's Growing #MeToo Movement". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  2. Farouk, Menna A. (2020-09-03). "Egypt's #MeToo crusader fights sex crimes via Instagram". Reuters. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  3. "Egypt student jailed for 3 years for online sexual harassment". Middle East Monitor. 2020-12-29. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  4. "Egypt's #MeToo Activists See Progress, but 'the Road Ahead Is Long'". www.worldpoliticsreview.com. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  5. "Egyptian Female Students at Higher Institute of Cinema Speak Out Against Sexual Harassment". Egyptian Streets. 2020-07-25. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  6. "Egypt's Nadeen Ashraf on BBC's '100 Most Influential Women' of 2020". Egyptian Streets. 2020-11-24. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  7. "BBC 100 Women 2020: Who is on the list this year?". BBC News. 2020-11-23. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  8. "BBC names two Egyptians in its '100 Women 2020' list". Egypt Independent. 2020-11-24. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  9. "Egyptian Activist Nadeen Ashraf Honored by Equality Now Among International Public Figures". Egyptian Streets. 2020-12-04. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.