Using Illustrated Children’s Literature to Educate Children and Adults of Their Rights

Fostering a Culture of Rights

Founded in 2004 by Egyptian lawyers, APRO is an independent non-governmental organization. Headquartered in Cairo, it works towards the reform of Egyptian and regional penal policies. This includes prison laws so they conform to international law. More broadly, APRO seeks to spread a culture of human rights. APRO seeks to inform Egyptian citizens of their rights under Egyptian and international law. A primary segment of the population are Egyptian youth. Egyptians ages 6 to 18 years old make up 36 percent of the population. Including Egyptians from ages 6 up to 35 years, these make up 69 percent of the population. Yet youth are marginalized by poor education, poverty, and unemployment after graduation. Political reform and change cannot happen without fostering a culture of human rights and democracy among the youth.

The Activist Ali’s Team children’s book series responds to this need. It promotes awareness of civil and legal rights through the adventures of a curious ten-year-old named Ali. Ali is concerned with the protection of society. He explores these protections by the rights and duties guaranteed by law as well as international covenants ratified by his country. Immutable rights and the imposed duties protect the citizens of Egypt. Ali wonders why do we not know about these basic human rights?” In the first book of the series, Ali meets a genie in his computer named Internetawy. The genie teaches Ali that computers are not just used for games. But also used to seek out valuable information and connect with other people. Ali also learns from his father that an activist is someone who tries to change society for the better. Afterwards, Ali and his friends form an activist’s club.

Illustrated Rights: Teaching the Next Generation

In each book they encounter a serious social or political problem in Egypt that they try to correct. For example, book number three in the series, The Dreams of Bahbouha and Zanana, brings up an issue sensitive in Egypt. This is gender inequality and child welfare. It tells the story of two ten-year-old girls named Bahbouha and Zanana. They are forced to work as household servants instead of remaining in school. After witnessing the plight of Bahbouha and Zanana, two female members of Activist Ali’s Team call the club together. They try to figure out a plan of action. Their meeting educates the readers on child welfare organizations in Egypt. The story shares about international organizations like the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Ali and his activist team also make concrete steps to solve the problem posed in each book. In the case of Bahbouha and Zanana, they find neighbors to donate desks and school books. They find teachers to volunteer their time to educate the two girls.

Other issues facing Egyptians that the book series examines are:

child homelessness

corporal punishment

consumer safety

animal cruelty

pollution and the environment

labor unions, and

Sudanese refugees in Egypt.

Rights in Action

At the end of each book in the series there is a brief explanation of the law or international human rights convention that applies to the story. These explanations not only educate children, but parents and teachers reading the story to children. They are informed in detail on their own civil rights in Egypt. They gain information on various human rights concepts, and of which international conventions Egypt has set into law. In The Dreams of Bahbouha and Zanana, for example, the authors explain the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The book explains that Egypt has adopted the convention into law.

The Failure of the Eraser tells the story of an elementary school election. Activist Ali’s Team learns lessons about the perils of using intimidation, bribery and fraud to win elections. The events of the book’s student election parallel many of the incidents that take place during real-life parliamentary elections. At the end of the story, the author explains Egyptian Law No. 73/1956. It states there is a penalty of imprisonment for six months or a fine for “everyone who uses violence or threat to prevent any person from voting in an election.”

Besides publishing the Activist Ali’s Team book series, APRO has engaged youth in human rights issues through publishing stories written by Egyptian children. In 2007, APRO held a competition for children to write stories that address human rights issues. APRO held a party in a hotel honoring 300 children who participated in the contest. The future Activist Ali book series included the issues and ideas raised by the children. APRO published some of their stories in their periodical, “Youth News”. All of the Activist Ali books and “Youth News” issues had been available in Arabic and English online. [The website www.activistali.org is no longer available].

Results and Barriers

The long-term success of APRO’s goal of fostering a culture of human rights in Egypt cannot be assessed. But the large number of stories and drawings by Egyptian children submitted for publication is evidence of the success of the Activist Ali’s Team book series. The book series received wide local and international media coverage. It won a distinguished award from the United Nations Development Project in 2007. Mohamed Zarea, director of APRO, said the cooperation of the Ministry of Education and the Egyptian National Council for Human Rights had been supportive. This resulted in the distribution of 450,000 copies of Activist Ali’s Team books to youth clubs, schools, shelters, orphanages, hospitals and cultural centers.

Despite the praise and support by the Egyptian Ministry of Education, the project ran into a roadblock in 2008. In February of that year the local security forces in the governorates of Upper Egypt removed the books from school libraries. The books were deemed a threat to state security. The government confiscated and returned more than 60,000 books to APRO. APRO continued distributing the books to private schools, detention centers and hospitals.

The effectiveness of the book series lies in the fact that the subjects dealt with, such as homelessness, child labor, unfair elections and gender inequality. These are salient issues children of all backgrounds will encounter in Egypt. Further, APRO involves children by publishing their stories in a youth newspaper, “Youth News,. APRO has included more detailed information on specific laws and human rights conventions. This gives adults a chance to educate themselves as well. Yet it is important to note that even initial permission from the government did not turn out to be a guarantee for APRO. They were unable to freely distribute the Activist Ali’s Team books, which cover controversial subjects.

What we can learn from this Tactic:

This tactic highlights the power of storytelling in an innovative educational method. Using a relatable character like Ali can make complex topics more accessible. This example creates opportunities for family to discuss their rights and responsibilities. This style of education encourages critical thinking and reinforces learning. It fosters a deeper connection to human rights issues. It engages readers to learn and understand their legal rights. It can empower young and old to advocate for their rights. When using such a tactic, consider your context for cultural relevance. Ensure the content is relevant to your target audience. Address your local laws and international covenants in your context to make the stories applicable and impactful. This tactic can be a versatile tool for education and advocacy. It is a creative way to raise awareness and inspire positive change in society.