Empowering women through AUC

Brochure of the WEC

 “Until women in the region are free and empowered, we will always need such clubs,” said Aliaa Eshaq, political science graduate and founder of the Women Empowerment Club (WEC) at the American University in Cairo (AUC).

Eshaq was always interested when it came to the situation of women in the Middle East. She noticed that women complained more than they took action. This angered her thus leading to the idea of a club.

 “We noticed that there wasn't any women empowerment club in AUC so we decided to be the first,” said Walid Hussien, petroleum engineering senior and co-founder of the WEC at AUC.

The WEC was created in the Fall of 2011 as a result of a community development course and of their scholarship program taken by both Eshaq and Hussien.

Hussien explained that in an institution like AUC, where the future leaders and privileged youth are expected to hold powerful positions, having such a club will be effective.

“These targeted will influence the process of change this country is undergoing,” he said.

“Because as an institution where freedom of expression is strongly addressed, we thought AUC should have a club to empower women and deliver their voices,” said Eshaq.

Since the Fall of 2011, there have been debates, events and lectures given and supervised by influential figures and faculty of the AUC. However, there have been some complaints from AUC students that the club is not “doing” much and therefore did not sign for recruitment. 

In response, Eshaq said, “they should come and participate and not wait for us to serve them”.

She points out that they “cannot offer anything” as they are not selling a product. They are merely providing a venue for concerned students to come and support the cause they believe in. She stressed that the success of the club depends on the AUC community. 

 

In an interview given to the Caravan in February 2012, Azza Hegazy, the WEC Multimedia head, said that “the club will initially target the AUC community, but its long-term plan will gradually change as it later seeks to join efforts with NGOs and other Egyptian universities in the future, to better promote for the welfare of women in Egypt.”

On another note, Eshaq is optimistic of the club’s place in the region. With Egypt being in the heart of the Middle East, she is positive about the impact it will have on the rest of the region.

“Plus, I can already see some successful movements outside AUC such as the anti-sexual harassment campaigns, so there is hope,” she said.

The current president of the WEC is Soumia Bendawad, who took over after Eshaq graduated from AUC in the Spring of 2012. However, on the WEC Facebook page, Eshaq can still be seen posting information from time to time, proving her dedication and determination to see the success of the club.

This semester during recruitment week, the WEC members could be seen wearing t-shirts that had the picture of the “Yes We Can” logo that compromised of a lady flexing her arm muscles. Their recent event was held on October 15 of this year, which was a lecture given by Sally Zohney on Sexual Harassment. 

“It all depends on the AUC community and how much they will invest in making the club a success, we could either be pioneers of the movement in the Middle East or we could be buried and forgotten,” said Eshaq.