The Authoritarian Turn: On The State of the Egyptian Intelligentsia’

On the occasion of New Directions’ publication of the writer Sonallah Ibrahim’s amazing, acclaimed Stealth, Bidoun and ND are bringing together writers and scholars to reflect upon the situation of the Egyptian intellectual in the last year, particularly since President Mohamed Morsi’s removal from power:

The event is tomorrow — which is one of the reasons I mention it here and not just on the events calendar — but it also promises to be particularly interesting and perhaps even spirited. From event organizers:

From Ibrahim himself to the bestselling author Alaa Al Aswany, countless writers and artists—many of them of historically contrarian bent—have expressed their support for a military-backed government whose abuses and excesses have on occasion surpassed those of the Mubarak era. How to begin to understand the role of the public intellectual in such times? Khaled Fahmy (American University in Cairo), Mona El Ghobashy (independent scholar), and Robyn Creswell (Yale University and poetry editor at The Paris Review) reflect on a year in which moral compasses have been cast hopelessly askew. To be moderated by Negar Azimi.

It will be held tomorrow at 7 p.m. at the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute, 19 Washington Square North, New York.

Also, according to Bidoun, “It will be recorded; we will try and make this available after the event.”

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