Mapping the Women’s Perception of Safety on Public Spaces The Case of Sha’bi Districts in Cairo Reeham Mourad Supervisors: Yehya Serag, Associate Professor of Regional Planning at Ain Shams University Josefine Fokdal, Interim Professor of International Urbanism at Stuttgart University Martina Rieker, Assistant Professor & Director of the Institute of Gender and Women’s studies and the American University in Cairo
Abstract The research sheds the light broadly on the working and middle-class districts in Cairo, raising questions concerning the class dynamics and urban behaviour in these Sha’bi communities regarding various aspects. One of the topics that this research generally steps in is the culture enlightenment, which is happening in such important medieval and historical districts. It shows how the area has been a spot for cultural revitalization and has recently developed attraction points for middle-upper class communities, which can be described as cultural enlightenment projects. The cultural enlightenment has both positive and negative sides of reserving the historic areas, but the most importantly question is: “Who is the cultural enlightenment for? This brings the discussion to the class struggle over space. Following this notion, the research tackles the impact of these cultural enlightenment projects on the social relations in Sha’bi areas with a focus on sexual harassment as a
