Mass Mobilization and Space in Revolutionary Egypt: An Affinity Convergence Theory (ACT) Analysis of Cairo's Tahrir Square

• In Event: Urban Violence and Political Contestation in the Middle East

Abstract

Much has been said about the masses who flooded Egypt's streets during the nation's 2011 revolution. Yet, there was also something special about Tahrir Square, the emblematic 'center' of Egypt's revolution to which hundreds of thousands of Cairenes would flock during the Eighteen Days. A space literally named after the nation's "Liberation" in its 1919 Thawra, Tahrir had since become a classic site for momentous protest. It was - in many ways- a perfect space in which to author a new moment in the nation's revolutionary history. The square's paramount position in the Egyptian political imaginary was complemented by the fact that - during the revolution's peak- the square had become a highly opportunistic location for agitation. It was at once visible to the world and protected from regime attack. Egyptians entering the square were able to feel freer, more empowered, and physically safer than they would have elsewhere. One need not have been a dedicated revolutionary to enter the square. Instead, going to Tahrir during the revolution offered the chance to pursue diverse interests, from collective prayer and mutual meals, to musical concerts and nighttime festivals: it was an exceptional attraction in every sense of the word. Drawing on Affinity Convergence Theory (Abrams 2023), this paper analyses how certain spatial conditions of convergence present in Tahrir Square interacted with other motivational, socio-structural, and biographical drivers of revolutionary participation (affinities), and offers some further analysis of the role of space in instances of mass popular mobilization.

Author

• Benjamin Abrams, University College London