My trip through Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey in the summer of 2000 remains one of the highlights of my life. One of the most vivid memories includes the hospitality, warmth, and passion of the people we met.
We also could see and feel the oppression.
With troops holding their weapons at the ready seemingly everywhere, it was hard to ever feel truly at peace.
With the protests in Tunisia, Jordan, and now Cairo (and in Iran in 2009), I hope for genuine peace in the Middle East.
Unfortunately, some of those behind the unrest have a more extreme fundamentalistic worldview which could lead to even less freedom and increased oppression of women.
Will these protests lead to more freedom or will they be squelched with more violence and more restrictions on freedom?
These uncertain times remind us of those who fought for freedom in our country, but they also remind us how rare and fragile freedom truly is.