Dan Schryer/Contributing Writer
On June 3, North Central College hosted a guest lecture by Nobel Peace Prize recipient Tawakkol Karman. Also known as the “Mother of the Revolution” and the “Lady of the Arab Spring,” Karman played a crucial role in the protests and anti-dictatorship revolutions that took place throughout the Middle East these past four years.
Karman’s lecture, titled “Remembering the Arab Spring,” took place in Wentz Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m. Among those in attendance were Naperville Mayor A. George Pradel, who presented Karman with a certificate of honorary Naperville citizenship, and Congressman Bill Foster of the 11th Congressional District.
Looking at all of us now, we have to realize that we are all one nation, that we are the new world
“Her struggle is an example of the triumph of the human spirit,” said Foster to the packed concert hall. “Her struggle is our struggle.”
Earlier that day, Karman had attended a luncheon hosted at Rall House, where she sat down with students and discussed the importance of her work and the adversity she had to overcome in order for her voice to be heard. “I have to struggle for two things: as a female and as a journalist,” said Karman.
“There are a lot of adversities, but I think the most important issue is equal citizenship,” spoke Karman to the varied collection of students who had been invited to the luncheon. “There are many issues between our cultures with women and their roles in politics and in society. They are hoping that women only play traditional roles… we made the revolution because we wanted equal citizenship, we wanted equality, we wanted dignity, not just for women, but also for men.”
Karman’s participation in the Arab Spring demonstrations put her life and the lives of her family members constantly at risk of being silenced by pro-government forces. “They arrested me many times, but on January 22, 2011, they kidnapped me in the night. I was very angry at the time. That was the first time they kidnap and arrest a woman in that way.”
“That was the turning point for all of my struggles,” Karman continued. “People had been listening to me and following me for years, but after they kidnapped me, people went outside and staged demonstrations for my freedom. Also when they kidnapped me, they gave me more courage. I did not hurt anyone, I did not kill anyone, so why would they do this to me? It was because they were afraid of my voice.”
Karman also spoke to social media’s role in both the news world and the demonstrations she orchestrated. “Social media is now our gate to the people, and it was also our gate to the revolution. And now it is our gate to rebuilding the Arab countries… It is very important in spreading our dreams and in telling the people how to use the tools to achieve our dreams and encouraging people to (work) together… to download our dreams from space to land.”
“By publishing our pictures, by inviting people to do this or that, by documenting everything… there are a lot of things to do within social media to help people,” expressed Karman. “I think Facebook and Twitter have more power than the journalists…Twitter and Facebook created more journalists… they gave citizens a lot of skills to be journalists, and to do a lot of different things. But with a lot of journalists, it made them lazy. They don’t look after the right information… so there are positive things and negative things. But in general, when journalists use it in a good way, it will empower their mission, their resources.”
Recently, Karman had the honor of being a part of a UN High Committee, headed by England’s PM David Cameron. This committee would assist developing countries during their times of strife and goes into effect after 2015. “We are 25 members, prime ministers and presidents… that was the most important work outside Yemen, or the most important work in the world.”
Students also asked what could be done by them to instigate a change in society in the same way that Karman had done. “It is feeling responsible to the crisis,” responded Karman. “Crisis is around us everywhere, and feeling responsible means that you are the one that will solve and face this crisis. You must say ‘I am the one to solve this problem’, not ‘I am the one who will wait for somebody else to solve this problem’… There’s an Arabic saying that says ‘if anyone asks who’s the guy (who solves the problem), you must say “I am”’. I saw the crisis around the country and said ‘I am the one’.”
“If people want to be alive,” Karman said at the lecture, “destiny will respond, the universe will respond, the darkness will disappear, and the chains will break.” Karman hoped to harness the same spirit of freedom and nonviolent protest that Martin Luther King, Jr. had once embodied. “We started dreaming, and we decided to achieve that dream… we decided to achieve it the same way as Martin Luther King; through peace.”
Karman’s dream for a better world beings with international citizenship. “As a human rights activist, you have to know that you’re an international citizen, meaning that people from all over the world are your family. You should fight and struggle for their rights.”
Karman’s initial lecture was followed by a question and answer session, led by Mustafa Alnaqeb, an international student from Yemen, Karman’s home country. Alnaqeb was a vital part of facilitating Karman’s visit to North Central, as he had been rallying for an appearance form her for some time. “She inspired an entire generation to work the miracle of change,” said Alnaqeb of Karman. “In a country that has been struggling for decades… with her assistance and voice, the oppressive government was overthrown.”
Karman concluded the event by emphasizing the importance of striving for equal human rights across the globe. “We aren’t just stopping the war between nations, it’s to stop injustice… to stop the killing of people by the dictators… Looking at all of us now, we have to realize that we are all one nation, that we are the new world … we are now all of us looking at a new future with international citizenship.”
