Woolf + Lapin is inspired by great stories. Especially ones that change the course of history.
If you haven’t heard of Wael Ghonim, you will.
Google Marketing Manager for the Middle East, Wael Ghonim is the face behind the Egyptian revolution.
He had started a Facebook page called We Are All Kahled Said after the death of the Egyptian youth at the hands of Mubarak’s police back in June. (Here is his Twitter page. He is now commenting on protests across the Middle East.)
Pretty soon, Ghonim had half a million followers. People began exchanging images of police brutality.
And with the simple username “Admin,” the Google executive used the Facebook page as a rallying cry to get people to the streets on January 25th.
He took 6 days off from his job at Google in Dubai to join them in Tahrir Square.
Then he went missing.
Mubarak’s men jailed him for 12 days for his social media organizing.
Upon his release he was interviewed on a highly-rated Egyptian television show.
During this interview he wept over the deaths of other protesters.
(Press the CC button for English subtitles)
The next day, even larger crowds took hold of Tahrir Square.
Mubarak couldn’t oppress the people anymore.
Eighteen days after the protest began, Mubarak stepped down.
Now, pro-reform protests are spreading across the Middle East.
Google CEO Eric Schmidt said yesterday that he’s “very, very proud” of the key role that employee Wael Ghonim played in the recent Egyptian protest movement.
So are we.