Ride in style: Egypt's pioneering female motorcyclists

[HEPZIBAH]

Ride in style: Egypt's pioneering female motorcyclists
Ahram Online speaks to the increasing number of women who are challenging social norms by riding motorcycles and scooters
Ingy Deif, Sunday 27 Jul 2014


Meet Basma El-Gabry, a veiled Egyptian girl living in the district of Masr El-Gedida, who founded Girls Go Wheels, which is a group supporting females choosing to use motorcycles, scooters or bicycles as their main means of transportation.

Since then it has been one of the best-known community groups for encouraging females to change their lifestyles, opting for the convenience of two wheels on the road.

"The refusal at the beginning was very firm and solid, my parents wouldn’t take it at all,” says Basma El-Gabry

"The idea started around ten months ago when I started talking to my family about my will to buy a scooter. The refusal I faced was from almost everybody, they simply couldn’t imagine how a female could move around like this without being harassed or subjected to some kind of danger," says Basma.

Solid argument

Basma's argument was what she still stands for: everybody has an equal right to practice the lifestyle that he chooses and sees convenient and comfortable as long as no harm is imposed on others by his actions, and that the three main reasons for riding a bike instead of the car are as follows:

• Evading the stress of traffic congestion, which takes a toll on the heath physically and mentally.

• Decreasing one's expenditure on gas and fuel.

• Saving A LOT of time better spent on more productive work.

"My mother told me that the only condition for her to agree is that I find five girls who ride on a regular basis and not only as leisure or confined to their residential compounds, so I started the quest!"

After three months, Basma said that her search led her to a group called the 'Cairo Scooters Club'.

"They were a group of riders in Cairo and Giza, from both genders, and from these I found the candidates who fulfilled my mother's condition. I started the procedures of obtaining my ride, and then I had this overwhelming thought of initiating this group to support other females with encouragement, raising awareness, and providing logistics.

"For three months it was calm and slow. It seems that girls were still intimidated by the idea, fearing that they will be met by mockery and sarcasm especially that the basics were a mystery to many of them-some girls wouldn’t know the meaning of scooter and were shy to ask.

"Then amazingly, membership requests poured in. We are around six months old and having almost 2,000 member. There is a wide array of riders, not only those who ride motorcycles, or scooters, but also we include those who choose bicycles as means of transportation. These numbers include many males who support the idea, some of whom were the ones initiating it for females in their families."

Girls go Wheels welcomes those who want to join from all over the country, collaborating with other entities like Cairo Scooter Club and Let's Scoot – which is the first school in Alexandria to teach females how to ride.

The main target of these communities and groups is to exchange experiences, cheer newcomers, and provide advice when it comes to the needed logistics of buying and obtaining a license, in addition to providing information about kinds of rides, as well as giving session to train girls and women for riding bikes and scooters

El-Gabry said that the trend has been on the rise lately, especially since the government raised price of the fuel, which saw the numbers spike by almost 30 to 45 percent.

Pioneering Alexandrians

From Alexandria, Ahram Online met with Sally El-Gindy, one of the founders of the female Alexandria Scooter Riders, which is a sub group of another bigger one for both genders that started earlier.

"Our beginning came two years ago, and we are now more than 300 female riders who use scooters and bikes as a main means of transportation," says Sally.

The group now organises every Friday morning at 10am for a ride that starts at the Library of Alexandria.

Sally takes pride in the fact that the group is considered very active in comparison with other groups, and the fact that peoples reaction is getting better by the day.

"Our campaigns are instant hits when they go viral, and we use interesting sentences to raise awareness and let people be more considerate towards those on two wheels on the road."

Sally adds that not only the number of shares and likes are an indicator for people's acceptance, but also the reaction they get in the streets. "Many people now stop us to take photos with us. We used to be bothered mainly by drivers of the minibuses, now they clear the road for us to pass!"

She concluded that even the paper work that used to take some time and the difficulties they faced back when there was a law prohibiting the importing of scooters to the country are all a distant memory, and that now the steps are much smoother.


For the photo's of this article with the girls with their non-girly bikes see the article: http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/107155.aspx

[carrie]

Julia from Genesis (Karnak) was riding a scooter years ago.

[LovelyLadyLux]

I only skimmed the article however my opinion is that Egyptian women riding a motorcycle or scooter or electric bike should be supported by the Egyptian men in their life as riding a motorbike solo will keep the women more chaste and virginal than being groped while using public transit!!

[Bearded Brian]

I only skimmed the article however my opinion is that Egyptian women riding a motorcycle or scooter or electric bike should be supported by the Egyptian men in their life as riding a motorbike solo will keep the women more chaste and virginal than being groped while using public transit!!

As women aren't allowed to get their leg over and have to sit side saddle controlling a motorbike would be a little difficult, a scooter on the other hand can be driven with the legs closer together (depending on the style of scooter) - whether this will stop them getting 'hot' will have to be decided by the family.

[HEPZIBAH]

You really need to click into the article and view the photo's to see just what sort of bikes some of these women are riding - they most certainly are not all Raleigh Shoppers or Italian city hopper Vespa's (hope that's the right word).

[Bearded Brian]

I can imagine the girls 'up north' (Alex and Cairo) getting away with motorbikes but in the more conservative south a scooter may just be allowable.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Now I've had a chance to click on the article and read it and have a look at the photos AND these are not the types of bikes that I envisioned them riding and I was also envisioning the women as being veiled with long black dresses/fully garbed sitting upright on the scooter type bikes.

Personally I see this (and definitely hope it catches on more and more) as a MAJOR step forward for women in Egypt. Egyptian males pretty much have the power and control corner totally sewn up and it is high time that women took snips to the stitches and started emerging and asserting their rights to be PEOPLE 'n PERSONS complete with full self determination. They need to move to first class citizenship, get a voice + power so they can start to address their collective needs.

I've often thought if women had a more equal and prominent role in the Arab world there wouldn't be so much strife. The men have had a chance to rule for centuries and a right botched job they've made of it. They desperately need women to move to the fore in full and equal informed partnerships and methinks LOTS of their problems would resolve and definitely minimize.

[HEPZIBAH]

It's interesting to compare Egypt and Morocco on this subject. In Egypt it is a rare site to see a women in charge of a motor bike of any ilk. In Morocco, in many towns and certainly Marrakech, you can hardly cross the road for women whizzing around on their scooters...and even some small motorbikes.... many not veiled but even some of the veiled women. Typically though, very few women, or me wear crash helmets or other protective clothing.

[carrie]

The problem is LLL that we look at things from a European/Western perspective, never would I allow my husband, son, brother to tell me what to do and how to live my life. The majority of Egyptian women want to marry have children as soon as possible and have a man to protect them. They are quite reconciled to the idea that if their husbands go out in dirty clothes with dirty shoes then it is a reflection on them as wives. A lot of the ladies here are quite happy with their lot. Unless you have been brought up in this culture you will never understand, what seems intollerable to us is what they have been brought up to expect and accept. I don't believe that we should impose our values on another culture. Change will come in it's own good time, girl's are now becoming more educated they are meeting "freer" girl's from Cairo, they have access to the internet and TV, not always a good thing, but since I came to live her 13 years ago now, I have seen changes. You would never have seen a woman drive a car, that is not now an unusual sight, girl's are dressing differently they seem much more interested in getting an education and finding a job when they have finished their education. Change is slow in coming but I believe that it will come.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Crash helmets are, really are necessary (to avoid head injury) in the case of an accident.

Road rash is painful (not that I know from motor bike experience - mine was actually from a horse back riding accident) but you do heal up from it.

Women in Saudi Arabia are not allowed to even drive cars!

I hope this is a trend that definitely continues. Once women start tasting freedom they'll want more and more. High time too. They've been marginalized for way too long as second class people.

[LovelyLadyLux]

The problem is LLL that we look at things from a European/Western perspective, never would I allow my husband, son, brother to tell me what to do and how to live my life. The majority of Egyptian women want to marry have children as soon as possible and have a man to protect them. They are quite reconciled to the idea that if their husbands go out in dirty clothes with dirty shoes then it is a reflection on them as wives. A lot of the ladies here are quite happy with their lot. Unless you have been brought up in this culture you will never understand, what seems intollerable to us is what they have been brought up to expect and accept. I don't believe that we should impose our values on another culture. Change will come in it's own good time, girl's are now becoming more educated they are meeting "freer" girl's from Cairo, they have access to the internet and TV, not always a good thing, but since I came to live her 13 years ago now, I have seen changes. You would never have seen a woman drive a car, that is not now an unusual sight, girl's are dressing differently they seem much more interested in getting an education and finding a job when they have finished their education. Change is slow in coming but I believe that it will come.

I've very aware I'm looking at this through a different cultural perspective and I'm quite aware that women are socialized very differently than we are in the west however while I can appreciate this I do see the present practices, values, norms that are there now ARE keeping women as second class citizens such that women are not allowed to reach their true full potential in education, activities, lifestyle etc.

It will all happen in its own time and Egyptian women need to get their own voice in this matter just as women before us did. They do need to come to a place where they WANT more for themselves and if not themselves they want MORE for their daughters and granddaughters. I just find it sad that many brilliant women are never allowed the freedom to live to their potential and have to bend to the will of their husbands.

On one of my forays to Trinidad and living in Hindu culture I had an idea re: writing a book and I spent some time interviewing very elderly Hindu women who had been bought and brought from India to be brides. They were tattooed by their husbands families as a sign of ownership and made to bend to his will (and mostly the will of the head mother in the house). Many of these women were kept illiterate and suffered long lives of hard work. Now their greatest pride (which I found rather sad) was that they 'did they're jobs' and 'gave him children' and 'served the family.' The one common factor I found was that they have very little 'self identity' and could not in any way recognize that they could have had a full(er) life. They lived a life of servitude and were never allowed to develop themselves as people or meet their own needs. They had very few likes in life and even in relation to their own children they really didn't bond with daughters (as these were taken and committed to marriage as young teens) and were very subservient to their sons catering to his every wish.

Hard to describe but I see many similarities in Egypt life particularly in women living in the villages. I could go on and on on this topic

[Mad Dilys]

At least 10 years, probably 15 years ago I used to see a Vespa ridden by two veiled women on the road by Al Azar and Al Hussein square.
The rider wore a hijab the pillion passenger a niqab.
The traffic was terrible and at first they seemed very nervous - soon passed though. The strange thing was that no one passed comment. It was just as if they weren't there.

[Mad Dilys]

I've often thought if women had a more equal and prominent role in the Arab world there wouldn't be so much strife. The men have had a chance to rule for centuries and a right botched job they've made of it. They desperately need women to move to the fore in full and equal informed partnerships and methinks LOTS of their problems would resolve and definitely minimize.

Well I hope that they don't look to Western women as role model. Western politics are still grinding on under male "leadership" and making the same old mistakes.................

[HEPZIBAH]

The problem is LLL that we look at things from a European/Western perspective,...

That is so true. It is something I learnt years ago and now have to weigh so many things up against my own British perspective and that of the country I am in. Doing that, I have found it has allowed me far greater access to conversation and others homes, or at least a better basis for exchange of differences and similarities.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Agreed that American women are still fighting, IMO, a very male dominated system. Quite different in Canada. Here we are more equal and in a very equal way too but, although saying what I said was somewhat tongue in cheek I do believe if women had a great say in how things were run there would be less social turmoil in the world.

[carrie]

LLL there is a book called Khul Khaal written by Nayra Atiya, if you ever get the chance to read it please do so. It is the stories as they tell them, of five Egyptian women, very interesting and enlightening. Printed in 2004 so a little out of date but still very relevant to the lives of women in Egypt today.

[Dusak]

Julia from Genesis (Karnak) was riding a scooter years ago.

If she had still been here, Julia would have created the ideal partner to form the female branch of the yet to start motorbike club of CE's as she was a fearsome road user, telling any idiot in or on a vehicle that came to close to here to get the **** away from her bike in her Arabic Russian drawl. A great many of the male bike owners did not like the fact that she did own and ride one.

[LovelyLadyLux]

I'll have a look see and see if I can find a copy of Khul Khaal . Thanks for the suggestion. Am sure I'd enjoy it.