In Oakville many of us take a lot for granted. So I thought this week as I watched in amazement at the human spirit when people rise up fighting for human dignity and freedom ….what lessons can Canadians learn?
Of course I am referring to the Egyptian uprising where peaceful demonstrators risked life and limb to demand the very rights we take for granted.
Having visited Egypt myself some 30 years ago, alone, afraid and completely blown away by the vast poverty of the region, I have an understanding I think beyond the news coverage.
This revolution started in another country, spread to Egypt and now offers the promise to spread across the region. It was a struggle that showed human dignity and will.
People power …. a revolutionary thought that many in our community forgot long ago. Egypt demonstrated a will that we have not passed on to our children as our kids’ hopes and demands usually focus on what video game or electronic device is within their purchasing reach.
We as a nation and definitely our community have lost the spirit because we focus on the daily mundane not the overall picture.
So what can we learn from the lessons of Egypt and its people?
To me ….we need to be more Egyptian.
As noted by a reader who hopes (along with many others) to restore sanity regarding our education where the special interests of some overtake the needs of the many, we need to get more Egyptian.
Travelling through the region some 30 years ago, I travelled from Cairo to the Valley of the Kings and beyond. I, as a journalist, captured pictures in tombs no longer open to the public and walked the sands alone (literally) around the pyramids. It was a time when tourism was not mature so I had the rare opportunity to experience their culture and treasures without the throngs of tourists that in later years would descend upon their lands.
I saw firsthand the ancient civilization with all its wonders. No picture or film can quite capture this. What was so clear to me, however, was the fall of the Egyptians. How could such an advanced society became an impoverished and suppressed nation?
Regardless of their past it was people power that rose above some of it. Poverty is still with them but at least this week the world saw the will to want better, to want justice, and to want human dignity.
We as Canadians need to become more Egyptian. We need to know that youth are often the power behind revolution and that if youth’s basic needs are not met…they will come calling……..
So the next time our politicians (and this includes educational trustees) vote for a line item, a policy change, a program, etc. that serves only some of our children…remember ….those left out will come calling.
Lets be more Egyptian and do the right thing for all without forcing a revolution.
