My Year in Egypt

by Colette Ghunim, Gilman Scholar

Study abroad was only the first step to unlimited possibilities for my future career in documentary filmmaking, and I continue to urge others to travel and learn about new cultures. My experiences in Egypt transformed my entire life and proved the immense value of going abroad.

While studying at Northwestern University, I decided to spend my entire junior year at the American University in Cairo in Cairo, Egypt. From August 2012 to August 2013, I immersed myself in the Arabic language and Egyptian culture, using a Gilman Scholarship to fund my studies. While there, I was connected through Gilman to Reach the World, an organization providing a global education resource to youth in the United States. I acted as a travel correspondent and created videos for a third grade classroom in New York, conducting Skype calls about what I was learning and experiencing in Egypt.

By engaging with youth that were eager to learn about the region and travel, I was forced to reflect on my study abroad experience on a much deeper level. Aside from Reach the World, I taught English and interned for Wataneya Society for the Development of Orphanages, creating videos to promote their work in improving the lives for orphans in Egypt.

Not only was I able to meet some of my best friends and become proficient in a new language, my perspective on my own life purpose and core beliefs dramatically transformed. I realized there is no one correct way to live, and that I can never judge people that I assume to be “different.” I was deeply aware of my present while there, in awe that I was among people with completely different lifestyles than my own, yet still with the same human desires and struggles. I learned new ways of how to care for my family and peers, as Egyptians were some of the kindest people I’ve ever met. Their ability to be so welcoming and generous towards people they had just met really left an imprint on how I now treat others.

Though I was evacuated early due to the resignation of Mohamed Morsi, studying abroad for a full year was, without a doubt, the best decision I made in college.

While in Egypt, I had unfortunately heard several stories and experienced sexual harassment, and for that reason, I returned to Cairo two weeks after graduating to start working on a documentary called “The People’s Girls” with my friend and photographer, Tinne Van Loon. The United Nations reports 99% of Egyptian women have faced some form of sexual harassment, and 65% of women here in the United States experience it daily. We first created a short video titled “Creepers on the Bridge,” which secretly captured the stares and harassment women endure in the busy streets of Cairo:

It went viral, quickly gaining more than two million views worldwide. With all this momentum, we created a Kickstarter campaign to fund our full documentary, “The People’s Girls,” on sexual harassment in Egypt. Over the following month, we were interviewed by Huffington Post, Buzzfeed, France 24, El Mundo, and many other international news sources.

We were able to receive contributions from more than 500 backers worldwide and gain a fanbase of more than 11,000 people on Facebook. The outpouring of support and excitement to watch the film reflected just how much the issue resonates with individuals globally.

We recently finished post-production for the documentary, and we are planning to host screenings internationally. Tinne and I are also in the process of submitting the documentary to international film festivals. “The People’s Girls” is meant to serve as a catalyst to spark discussion, challenge perspectives on who is to blame and explore how to fight harassment.

I could have never directed such a film, nor been able to immerse myself so fully in Egyptian culture without the support of the Gilman Scholarship. Study abroad was only the first step to unlimited possibilities for my future career in documentary filmmaking, and I continue to urge others to travel and learn about new cultures. My experiences in Egypt transformed my entire life and proved the immense value of going abroad.