Abdelrahman ElGendy

Abdelrahman ElGendy is a writer and former Egyptian political prisoner. Arrested from a protest, he spent six years and three months behind bars between October 6, 2013, and January 13, 2020.

Incarcerated at 17 and released at 24, he started and earned a mechanical engineering BSc from Ain Shams University in Egypt while in prison.

His smuggled prison writings circulated online until picked up and published in 2018 by Mada Masr, an independent journalism platform in Egypt.

Since his release, he has turned to writing and advocacy work. His vision as a writer has been to utilize counter-narratives of the marginalized and oppressed as a form of resistance to the propaganda of tyrants, with a focus on advocating for the release of Egyptian political prisoners.

During his MFA at the University of Pittsburgh, ElGendy is working on a book project documenting his incarceration experience.

ElGendy’s writing is featured on Mada Masr, Raseef 22, Daraj Media, Newlines Magazine and the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy. He is also the copywriter and editor of the Leading Change Network NGO. 

You can view his work at https://www.abdelrahmanelgendy.com/, and find him on Twitter at @El_Gendy_95