I was thinking too that in the U.S., his tears would have made him an object of derision, but in other cultures, men are not unmanned by crying or other strong emotions.
I also thought how much his emotion was neatly enscribed in other cultural ideals: loyalty, humility, sincerity, devotion... I was not at all suprised it had the impact it did.
Joanna
----- Original Message ----- From: "Hein Marais" <hein at marais.as>
No one in the west seems to have realized the impact of Wael Ghonim (Google guy) post-detention interview one week ago: his break-down and walking off the set was emotionally genuine, but it was also (unintentionally) pitch perfect Egyptian drama – seriously, it was sooooo melodramatic - the effect of which was pure mass media mobilization when all internet based sources were shut down ….in one fell swoop it branded the security forces as the source of the violence at a time when many Egyptians were unsure, and at the same time branded the security forces and the regime as the source of everything wrong with social mobility in the country; it spoke to all those who wanted to be him and all those who wished their sons and daughters could have those opportunities, etc etc. I have no doubt that millions of mothers – and quite a few fathers – were in tears at the end of it. Can media ever replace organization? No. Can organization ever bring millions into the street without media? No).
On 14 Feb 2011, at 5:18 PM, 123hop at comcast.net wrote:
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Michael Pollak" <mpollak at panix.com>
>
> Everything I have read credits labor organizing as the key factor in
> the Egypt uprising. It will clearly play a crucial role in the
> coming months, as the generals attempt to stem the flood. But what I
> don't understand is why it has to be one or the other.
>
> This uprising has been years in the making -- something like a
> decade. I see social media playing two roles in that period. One, by
> broadcasting images of the torture it made something a matter of
> public indignation that would otherwise have been a matter of
> private shame. Second, because social media tends to flatten
> hierarchies, and to suggest that we do indeed make stuff up as we go
> along...it created a new space that the participants could fill with
> their own reality and dreams.
>
> j.
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