Maha El-Sanosi

Sudan, I love you.. but you're taking a toll on me [4]

Thursday, September 20, 2012 - 06:43, by Maha El-Sanosi

As a kid, summer in Sudan was always fun. I was always busy doing something; playing hijla with my sisters, baking mud cookies with my cousins and actually drying them under the sun, or getting yelled at by a random grownup for playing skip rope outside the house. We were little girls; stepping out of the house was naturally a no-no… so we always used to make excuses to go to the dukaan to buy halawa harba, Jersey chocolates and Chiclets chewing gum. I never questioned grownups’ authority even though I knew many of their rules were silly. Amusingly, those rules used to disappear the… ( Read on! )

Comments: 45

A spark in Khartoum

Saturday, September 08, 2012 - 09:24, by Maha El-Sanosi

From the 2012 Dream Deferred Essay Contest. Read the article here.

January 30, 2011 – a day seared in my memory forever. For days I had been following a Facebook event titled “January 30th protest” scheduled to take place in Khartoum. At the time, the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions had sparked a wave of inspiration among Sudanese youth. Enthused by rousing quotes that went viral on Facebook; such as “January 30th: the Sudanese people have a say,” my veins throbbed with excitement for days on end. Almost 10,000 people confirmed their attendance. I could hardly wait.

I pictured it… ( Read on! )

Comments: 572

#SudanRevolts: We’re sorry; the revolution you requested is currently under construction

Friday, September 07, 2012 - 09:38, by Maha El-Sanosi

It’s been hard for me to let go of #SudanRevolts; a real tough pill to swallow. When the protests first sparked in mid-June, I had no doubt in my mind that they would come to fruition. For two months I gave up almost everything that mattered to me and dedicated to #SudanRevolts – a movement that gave the most meaning to my life at the time – my utmost and undivided attention. Sceptics, NCP-apologetics and some random Facebook friends christened me a “romanticizer of the so-called Sudanese revolution”. When I look back now, I feel that for the entire duration of the protests I… ( Read on! )

Comments: 190

BlogHer 2012: Thank you note

Monday, September 03, 2012 - 19:36, by Maha El-Sanosi

In May I received an email from BlogHer notifying me that I was chosen as one of the four recipients of the 2012 International BlogHer Activist Scholarship. This was before any of the major protests sparked and way before my detention. I couldn't contain my excitement; particularly since visiting New York has always been a dream of mine. I spent the next few weeks planning my trip to attend the BlogHer 2012 conference which was scheduled in August. I then became consumed with the June protests and the sudden outbreak of #SudanRevolts.

June was a very emotional month for most of us who… ( Read on! )

Comments: 197

In remembrance of Dr. John Garang

Monday, July 30, 2012 - 11:49, by Maha El-Sanosi

I vividly remember the day Dr. John Garang died seven years ago. I was at the university attending a lecture. Upon receiving an urgent phone call, my professor suddenly announced that the lecture was over and that campus was being evacuated. The leader of South Sudan, Dr. John Garang had died after the Ugandan presidential Mi-172 helicopter he was flying in crashed mysteriously. We were advised to go home; chaos had erupted in the streets of Khartoum.

I was a student in my second year of university. Though I was young and oblivious towards most of what was going on in my… ( Read on! )

Comments: 214

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Sudan, I love you.. but you're taking a toll on me [4]

A spark in Khartoum

#SudanRevolts: We’re sorry; the revolution you requested is currently under construction

BlogHer 2012: Thank you note

In remembrance of Dr. John Garang

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