Emily Bost

Professor Bartz
English 104
11-19-14
Argumentation Research Paper
Muslim-Christian Relations and Tahrir Square in 2011
Tahrir Square is a central, public area located in Downtown Cairo, Egypt. It is
renowned for its association with the political rallies that led to the resignation of the
leader of Egypt, President Hosni Mubarak, in 2011. About 250,000 protestors, including
both Muslims and Christians, united to work towards this common goal of overthrowing
the government. In this essay, I will discuss the general backgrounds and history of the
relationship between Muslims and Christians. Furthermore, I will build off of that
foundation of background information, by describing the events that led up to the
revolution that took place in and during Tahrir Square in 2011. I will focus on how
Muslim-Christian relations, along with other factors, evolved during this period and how
these changes effected the whole of Egyptian society.
Christians have been known to hold negative stereotypes against Muslims. This
trend can be traced back to the emergence of Islam during the seventh century (Esposito).
The spread of Islam changed the makeup and culture of regions spreading from northern
India to Spain, and because of this, Christians were agitated due to the fact that Islam
challenged and questioned Christian ideals and principles (Esposito). Christian writers in
the eighth century tended to focus on and regard Muslims with harsh and malevolent
misinterpretations about their principles and beliefs. However, some positive writers,

such as St. Francis of Assissi (d. 1226) who visited the sultan of Egypt, advised his men
to live among the Muslims in peace (Esposito).
John L. Esposito stated that Islam is based on self-understanding and awareness
of biblical tradition. The Quran positively affirms Christians and Jews, stating that
Jews and Christians who have faith, trust in God and the Last Day, and do what is
righteous shall have their reward (The Quran 2:62 and 5:69) (Esposito). The Quran
lays out a map, or a framework, in which Muslims are expected to follow in regards to
their understanding of Christians and the Christian faith.
Egypt can be referred to as a religious and intellectual center of the Islamic
world (Esposito). Located in Cairo, Egypt is both the Coptic Orthodox Christians, who
make up the most sizeable Christian society in the Arabic-speaking region and al-Azhar,
both a mosque and a university (Esposito). So, it is evident that Egypt is swollen with
large and very different groups with sometimes contrasting ideals. History shows that
striving to overcome these contrasting ideals has been a reoccurring issue between the
two religious groups.
In the book Striving Together A Way Forward in Christian-Muslim Relations,
Charles Kimball considers the various ways to achieve a peaceful union between
Muslims and Christians. He begins by stating that Westerners have a particularly biased
and ignorant view on Islam, due to the illogical stereotypes that are associated with
violence and intolerance. A step that Kimball believes to be vital in establishing a more
peaceful relationship between the two religious groups is to unlearn the hateful
stereotypes (Kimball). This is possible through education and dialogue (Kimball).
During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the first steps were taken to initiate

the Muslim-Christian dialogue movement. These steps included the improvement of

transportation and forms of communication in regards to international trade, and
acquiring knowledge on different belief systems (Esposito). There are several motives
that have instigated this modern dialogue movement. These motives include the common
desires to build understanding between both religions, work on specific issues that
generate friction and concern, establish cooperation in working with one another, and to
recognize both similarities and differences between the two ideals (Esposito). Pope John
Paul II, a significant Christian leader in the twentieth century, was a prominent advocate
of peaceful interfaith relationships, because he recognized that value in peaceful ties
between different groups (Esposito). In order to put these beliefs into practice, he would
frequently meet with leaders from various religions, in order to establish peace. In
Casablanca in 1985, Pope John Paul II delivered a speech to over 80,000 Muslims in a
stadium stating his views on interfaith relations (Esposito). We believe in the same God,
the one God, the Living God who created the worldIn a world which desires unity and
peace, but experiences a thousand tensions and conflicts, should not believers come
together? (Esposito). Establishing a sense of collaboration and comprehension between
the worlds biggest religions is considered quite critical, because of their historic
relationships and difference in scriptural, social, and political issues. With this brief
explanation and understanding of the past relations between Muslims and Christians, I
will focus on the correlation between the two groups relationship and the events in Tahrir
Square.
On Tuesday, January 25th of 2011, Egyptians gathered in Tahrir Square to
demand social and political reformation and protest the rule of President Mubarak. A

Facebook page, called Day of Revolution, was established prior to the protests, which
organized and established the gathering of the Egyptian civilians who were going to
protest (Fahim). The Facebook group coordinators framed the rally as an opposition
against corruption (Fahim). This was a beneficial way of spreading the word of the
revolution and recruiting civilians to physically come out and protest in Tahrir Square.
The marchers advanced from differing backgrounds, religions, social classes, and
ideology. When it became clear the revolutionists were not going to retreat from Tahrir
Square, military forces began to confront the civilians and violence began to take place in
the center of Cairo (Fahim). Rubber bullets were used to shoot at civilians, tear gas and
concussion grenades were thrown into large masses of people, and police officers drove
protestors from the square (Fahim). Officers dressed as civilians beat numerous protestors
and in turn, protestors began to act violently towards the police as well. On one occasion,
protestors flipped over a police vehicle and set it ablaze (Fahim). The violent acts that
were demonstrated not only in Tahrir Square, but all across Egypt, were symbolic of the
anger and dissatisfaction that set deeply inside each protestor, towards President
Mubarak.
Furthermore, cellphone towers and networks were overtaken by the government
and blocked, so that civilians could not be in contact with people outside of Tahrir
Square, or vice versa (Fahim). Social networks, such as Twitter, were blocked because
they served as tools to spread knowledge to others outside of the Square on the corruption
that was truly happening (Fahim). Later, Twitter did confirm that the government had
blocked their site in Egypt at the beginning of 2011 (Fahim). This spreading unease with
President Hosni Mubarak extended throughout Egypt. Large numbers of people

represented the opposition groups that were continually persecuted by the Egyptian
government as they strived to overcome President Mubaraks absolute rule on political
and social life (Fahim).
The revolution engaged a very broad range of Egyptians from different social
backgrounds, genders, ages, and religions (Krajeski). What initially began as a minute
rally outside of Cairos Supreme Court establishment, quickly swelled to hundreds and
hundreds of diverse protestors marching through the streets of Egypt (Fahim). Chants of
protest rang out in unison across the square: Dignity, Freedom, and Social Justice!
(Kimball). This was the beginning of what would turn out to be an 18-day revolution in
the square (HirshKind). However, the Egyptian revolution did not actually begin on
January 25th. Anthropologists, Egyptians themselves, and academic observers recognized
that the revolution began decades ago within simple day-to-day tasks, such as different
struggles for food, occupations, political activism, security issues, and human dignity
(HirschKind).
The revolution in Tahrir Square in 2011 was so significant, because it has always
historically been a place of revolution. In 1919, Tahrir Square was the location of the
Egyptian rebellion towards the English colonial control (Rashad). Furthermore, the word
Tahrir is actually translated to mean liberation (Rashad). Geographically speaking,
Tahrir Square sits in the middle of Cairo, Egypt, encompassed by government buildings
(Rashad). In 2011, not only was Tahrir Square a center for revolution; it was a place and
opportunity for people to unite together. The revolution forced people of dissimilar
backgrounds to willingly come together to peacefully protest for a common wish.
Muslims and Christians gathered in Tahrir Square, setting aside their differences, in order

to protest as one unified group, with one common goal in mind. This shared dream was
for a genuine secular democracy (Krajeski). Throughout the period of protest at the
beginning of 2011, Muslims and Christians would literally form human chains around
one another in order to protect each other while praying. For example, when the Muslim
protestors in Tahrir Square needed to pray during the day, Christian protestors would join
hands, creating a human circle around the Muslims, serving as a barrier between the
Muslims and the police force. They did this to allow the other religious group to pray in
peace. This was a significant and reoccurring action throughout Tahrir Square in 2011,
which truly signified the advancements and hope for Muslim-Christian relations in the
future. People are able to look back at the peace between the two religious groups, and
see how that peace transformed into action that would benefit the Muslims and
Christians society, called Egypt. Together, they were able to create a revolution and make
the difference that they had hoped for. Together, the pushed the President of Egypt, Hosni
Mubarak, to resign from power.
One protestor from Tahrir Square, Mohammed Abouelleil Rashad, recounts how
the goals of the revolutionists changed over the period of time at the beginning of 2011.
In his article The Egyptian Revolution: A participants account from Tahrir Square,
January and February 2011, Rashad states that the initial goals of the protestors were an
end to police brutality, the termination of Egypts 30 year state of emergency, the
removal of dramatic social inequalities and the endemic poverty caused by systematic
corruption and mismanagement. Through Rashads words, it is easy to see that the
people of Egypt wished for dramatic political and social reformations. However, as the
protest began, Rashad recognized a shift in the ultimate goals of the revolutionaries.

Egyptians from all over the world, from various different circumstances, were pushing
for individualized, complex demand, when what they would all truly benefit from was
the downfall of President Mubarak. The protestors began to shout the individual phrase
Mubarak must go! Rashad recognized that the only way [the protestors] togetherness
could be realized was through a simple yet powerful demand (Rashad). This sense of
unity in Tahrir Square was one of the main factors that generated a distinction between
the Muslim-Christian feelings of us and them that plagued the two groups before
stepping into Tahrir Square as protestors (Rashad). After stepping foot into the Square,
the two religious groups were one.
Tahrir Square was consistently occupied with Egyptians working, protesting, and
speaking together, until President Mubarak resigned from office on February 11th of 2011,
leaving his rule to a caretaker government (Rashad) (Krajeski). The revolution also
brought upon tangible victories for the people of Egypt (HirshKind). For the first time in
decades, the countrymen were able to speak and rally freely (HirschKind). Akram
Youssef, a protestor in Tahrir Square, described the event as a very strange moment,
because, the people were controlling everything (Krajeski). Youssef recalls the
protestors yelling, This is a peaceful protest!, to the lines of police, surrounded by tear
gas, water cannons, and rubber bullets, on the Galaa Bridge (Krajeski). Crowds of people
left their homes and jobs to march and protest together. One young woman, Dr. Wesam
Abdulaziz, traveled two hours to join the events of the protest (Fahim). Her hopes to
change the government and change the entire regime drove her to travel and take part
in the rallies in Tahrir Square (Fahim).

When observing matters post-Egyptian Revolution, it is evident that there are

more complex social and political landscapes. A political activist stated that [Their]
main problem as revolutionaries, most of the time, we only object and say no, and we
never suggest alternatives (Trager). Egypts military regime continues to make deals
with the Muslim Brotherhood, whose members hold the majority of the sports in
Egyptian Parliament (HirschKind). Amendments were proposed to the constitution,
which gave the illusion of advancing towards a more democratic political system;
however, the amendments were endorsed and supported by the Muslim Brotherhood
(Krajeski). This signifies that the military and the group of Islamists, or the Muslim
Brotherhood, are in some sort of alliance with one another (Krajeski). This is just one of
the many examples of day-to-day corruption that occurs in Egypt. The military regime
that took over Mubaraks office reveals few signs that symbolize a shift towards a
democratic government, because doing so might jeopardize their own power and status
(Krajeski). The military regime is so focused on keeping and retaining their own power
that they are not willing to make beneficial adjustments for the better of the Egyptian
society. The regime enforced laws that stated that all protests were illegal and those who
would defy the laws would be immediately arrested (Krajeski). Corruption is prevalent in
Egypt today: people are beaten on the streets by military police, women are subject to
virginity tests, and media is regulated by the government (Krajeski). Maikel Nabil was
arrested and sentenced to three years in jail, because his blog contained sensitive
information that the Egyptian government considered to be insulting to the military
institution and publishing false news about it (Krajeski). This regulation of media, along
with the other forms of government regulation in Egypt, is a prime example of why

Egyptian civilians protest and fight for a different system of political and social
regulations. Today, the revolution continues on for many driven Egyptians: the protest in
Tahrir Square in 2011 was not the end of the Egyptian Revolution, it was a monumental,
yet mere, stepping stone on the path towards overthrowing the political regime, regaining
nobility in life, and bettering Egypt.
Although there are still political and social dissensions, there are also secularminded revolutionaries who are still fighting towards bettering Egypt as a country. These
young revolutionists stand firm in their beliefs and ideas of what they hope for Egypt to
one day become. The Egyptian Revolution has proceeded for thirty years and will
continue on until the people of Egypt are satisfied with their government and level of
dignity. The protest in Tahrir Square in 2011 that led to the resignation of President Hosni
Mubarak played a significant role in establishing the hope for a peaceful relationship
between Muslims and Christians in Egypt. It has been made clear that by establishing this
hope through unity and respect for one another, people will see that there is no reason to
form hateful stereotypes around groups of people. Furthermore, by looking at facts and
history, people will see from the evidence of events left behind from Tahrir Square in
2011, that more can be accomplished (for example, overthrowing a powerful head of
government) if people set aside their differences and work together to reach a common
goal.

Word Count: 2,503

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