Save type designer Hasan Abu Afash from Gaza

yanone · February 22

Sorry for posting this in the wrong category, as I couldn't find a better category for this.

Yesterday morning, I received a desperate call for help via a mass email from Gaza-based type designer Hasan Abu Afash, who is looking for funds to help his family of 6 cross the Rafah border into Egypt.

I donated some money but then found that it would be a good idea to start a more coordinated effort to reach the funding goal.

Please try to share this far and wide (even tho Instagram doesn’t allow sharing) and of course donate if you can.

Please follow the Linktree via my bio to reach the campaign website, or use this link: https://gofund.me/39ae9000

Nadine Chahine · February 23

Thank you for this great initiative!

Johannes Neumeier · February 23

Donations to humanitarian aid organizations could provide help to the many, not just a few.
Afaik the Rafah border is and has been closed. Donate anyway, but don't be ignorant about the premise.
Why not re-share the bank information instead of actually redacting it?

And maybe, just maybe, lose the name dropping at the beginning of the intro, eh?

yanone · February 23

1. It's entirely your own choice to ignore a direct plea for help that you receive from someone you know. (Never met him personally, but known about him for decades). Low impact for many vs. high impact for few.
2. The border is closed except for "VIPs" who can bypass visa applications by paying an Egyptian firm with links to the security establishment by getting on a list. The list is currently closed, but is expected to be reopened. This is the strategy here.
3. The name dropping was about trust-building. I thought it would be better if I stand with my own name for the whole thing, which so far seems to work out. But it's a fair remark and I've added a note about that.

yanone · February 23

I’ve actually removed the redaction of the bank account (and enlarged the email in two separate images, as aspect ratio is fixed landscape in Gofundme). That was an irrational decision.
Later today I'll add photos I've received from them.

yanone · February 28

Donations to humanitarian aid organizations could provide help to the many, not just a few.

Sorry that I need to come back to this. I don't mean to argue but this has been bothering me for a while and I want to get this off my head:

Donations to aid organizations, while surely important, still mean that Gazan people will be stuck in a hellish open-air prison for the rest of eternity. Freedom of movement means that it should be up to the individual people of Gaza to decide whether they want to stay in the prison forever and accept a little piece of bread as aid as long as the suffering is shared amongst all, or escape into a much saner and freer life outside of Gaza.

It was the expressed wish of Hasan Abu Afash to escape, and I’m just trying to help.

Nadine Chahine · February 28

There is also quite a big difference between sending aid to a community (which is very welcome) vs sending funds to a member of our own type design community. This is someone who has contributed a lot to this field and is in dire need of support.

yanone · March 3

(A selection of Hasan’s work)

Here’s a small update about the campaign: With just over 25,000€ it looks well-funded, but the single-largest donation of 9,500€ is from a direct friend of Hasan's, and without this donations it's actually looking not as bright.

Meanwhile, GoFundMe's legal compliance team has screen the campaign for compliance and has given the green light. I've received most of the donated funds already.

Also, I've been wanting to post some photos for a while now.

Below you see photos of the house they had to leave behind destroyed, the family before they found a shelter, as well as the shelter they currently live in in Rafah.

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5019405/uploads/editor/vn/2gzri66wnikx.jpg

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5019405/uploads/editor/10/1v1pnlj2h6qe.jpg

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5019405/uploads/editor/rv/vi7ocpgd5tsi.jpg

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5019405/uploads/editor/1o/am023bqvsw0w.jpg

I wanted to send a reminder to everyone to consider a donation or even top up their previous donation to reach the funding goal.

As previously mentioned, Hasan Abu Afash is desperately looking for the financial means to escape Rafah into safety in Egypt. Although the Rafah border is officially closed, there is a possibility of paying large sums of money to an Egyptian firm called Hala that has close ties to the Egyptian security apparatus and that semi-officially takes people out of Gaza since 2019.

Here’s the campaign:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/save-type-designer-hasan-abu-afash-from-gaza

In the name of Hasan and family, I thank you for your support in this most difficult time.

Connary Fagen · March 8

Thank you Jan. Please keep us updated if you can.

yanone · March 18

Good news: It appears as though Hasan and family have been enlisted for the evacuation program. Through a few loopholes we were able to transfer the existing campaign funds to relatives of his in Cairo, who yesterday confirmed that on Hasan’s behalf they managed to apply for the evacuation, which is an operation run more or less officially by the Egyptian security apparatus since 2019.
Hasan says the waiting period may now be up to one month, which will definitely be another really difficult period for them, but they can see the light at the end of the tunnel now.
This means that all future donations will help cushion their arrival in Cairo, given that all goes well now and they arrive safely. So if you can, please don’t stop donating: https://www.gofundme.com/f/save-type-designer-hasan-abu-afash-from-gaza
In the name of Hasan and family I'm once again deeply thankful of your existing donations.

John Hudson · March 18

Thank you so much for the update.

yanone · March 19

The campaign to evacuate type designer Hasan Abu Afash and family from Gaza has reached its funding goal.

An anonymous person from the type industry has completed it in one go.
I received the funds directly onto my bank account, hence it’s marked as “offline”.

Amazing!

Now they need to survive Rafah.

PabloImpallari · March 20

What a great community you all are...

Claudio Piccinini · March 25

That is very good! And they should end this war.

Nadine Chahine · March 26

Such a relief!!! A ray of light in an otherwise horrific situation. Thank you for all your support!!!

yanone · April 15

Hasan Abu Afash and family safely arrived in Cairo late last night.

Thomas Phinney · April 15

I am thrilled to hear this—as many others will be!

John Hudson · April 15

Brilliant!

Jonathan Fabreguettes · April 15

This is the best news I've read on TypeDrawers.

Thank you @yanone for your work.

Save type designer Hasan Abu Afash from Gaza

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