Naglaa

#a_fighter

#breaking_free

#the_word_of_truth

#genuine_egyptian

“If everyone believes that they deserve a better life, they won’t think of themselves as victims.”

Naglaa creates her own world through reading and writing. She’s a true fighter who takes Nelson Mandela as her idol. Naglaa’s challenge was caused by the frequent change of caregivers in her care home, it made her distracted and unstable, and it led her to trust and identity issues. She says “Someone would come and teach us something and leave. Then someone new would come and teach us something totally different.” However, she managed to see the positive aspect of this dilemma, she decided to filter, to only embrace whatever felt ‘right . . . what suited her character. She believes that she’s the result of a group of different experiences. She believes that she and her sisters deserve the best, and rejects playing the role of the victim. She experienced loneliness as a high-school student, as no one shared with her the fears and the concerns of that phase. She overcame that feeling by hoping for a better future. Naglaa symbolizes her life as a journey of many stops and self-explorations.

“I perceive myself as someone unique and different; I’m my confusions, my dreams, my name, and the people I meet from different backgrounds.”

Naglaa found her passion in studying media, psychology, and business administration. She uses her knowledge to support her cause and to serve her goals. She worked as a nanny, a preschool teacher, and a school bus supervisor. She’s also working in the Ministry of Social Solidarity and established her own online-mini-market. She learnt graphic design, voiceover art, and discovered herself as an independent writer. She studied journalism and trained in the Radio and Television Institute to represent her cause. She explains her intention and says “I’m establishing myself to be credible, to myself and the people I address.”

“The concept of a dignified life for every orphan was the idea that drew me toward Sanad. I had a voice, but it was Sanad that made me let it out to the world.”

Naglaa started her journey in Sanad in 2018 through Sanad’s Youth Forum, where she met different people and found more opportunities. Sanad’s Conference in 2019 was her life’s turning point; that was how she knew about Mohamed Othman, a careleaver from Saudi Arabia. She was amazed by his self-confidence when he simply said that he’s an orphan who grew up in an orphanage, she says “We were impressed by his truthfulness, usually people lie about themselves and make up stories.”

Naglaa’s second life changing moment was in 2020, when she discussed how shallow the media portrayed her cause in an online event organized by Sanad. The event hosted the Egyptian screenwriter Mariam Naoum and the famous actor Asser Yassin. “On that day, I announced on facebook that I grew up in an orphanage.” says Naglaa, “ . . . it was only a virtual confrontation, but it still counted as a step forward. Then I wrote my whole story and I was surprised with the support I received. It made me realize that we create our own shackles and illusions of fear that we’re not accepted by society.”

In 2021 Naglaa participated in Mobader (The Initiator), one of Sanad’s programs on Community Leadership. Her campaign in the program addressed independence; it discussed identity as an important factor of being and feeling independent after leaving the orphanage. Naglaa says that Sanad targets young people because they are usually never oriented or trained on independent life, which leads them to facing lots of day-to-day challenges after leaving their homes. Through Mobader, Naglaa learnt how to plan, lead and pose important questions like: Why? and How? She also accepted the fact that some questions will remain unanswered.

“Sanad for me represents the free voice, a voice that is heard. Sanad is a safe space where so many walls and fears were destroyed, and I finally felt free.”

During the Girl International Day, Naglaa played the role of the Minister of Social Solidarity in an event executed by the ministry and Plan International. Talking with reporters helped her overcome her fears, which then encouraged her to participate as a speaker in other events and workshops organized by Sanad. One of these events was under the name: I’m not only an Orphan which took place during World Youth Day. She describes it as one of the most successful events, as it was a message from the youth addressing their peers. She was also a part of The Storytelling program, where she learnt how to express her feelings and tell her own narrative. She also worked in another Sanad Platform: Gaylak Men Henak (I come to you from the future), where young people pass on knowledge derived from true experience.

Naglaa is finishing her masters. She hopes this will help her along with her accumulated knowledge to serve her cause and know more about herself. . . “I like to leave a print everywhere I go. That’s why God created us, to build and create. I want people to say that I lived and died and left something behind.”