Against Oppression, Exclusion, and Hatred: Farewell Sarah Hegazi

Statement by the Revolutionary Socialists

The Revolutionary Socialists mourn the loss of the socialist activist Sarah Hegazi, who left our world the day before yesterday. We extend our condolences to her comrades, family, and loved ones, who were not given a moment to grieve as the haters quickly flooded the condolence posts with all forms of hatred.
It is difficult to describe Sarah Hegazi. She was an exceptional activist in everything she cared about and fought for, whether it was gender issues, feminism, class struggles, or other causes that concerned her. She fought for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community against exclusion, hatred, and oppression. She stood in solidarity with political prisoners and spared no effort in supporting workers’ struggles against exploitation and impoverishment.

We and the world lost Sarah Hegazi after the experiences of imprisonment, sexual assault, exclusion, discrimination, and hatred led her to severe depression, which resulted in her suicide. This occurred solely because the state seeks to control bodies, sexual orientations, and personal freedoms, just as it controls livelihoods through impoverishment and hunger and public freedoms through repression, arrests, and torture. Sarah committed no crime by declaring her identity. The actual sexual crimes are harassment, rape, virginity tests, and persecution based on sexual orientation or beliefs—crimes sometimes committed by the state itself or entirely overlooked by it at other times. Oppression, spreading hatred, and inciting violence are also crimes.

However, we have not lost the dream. Sarah fought for a fairer, kinder world—a different world that accepts diversity, takes pride in it, and fights against all forms of discrimination and exploitation. Continuing our struggle on the same path with patience and perseverance is the best tribute to her and the best response to the ongoing hate campaign. Our unconditional solidarity with Sarah, her comrades, her loved ones, and the LGBTQ+ community is indeed a stand against oppression, exclusion, and hatred.