Egyptians Prevail!

I couldn’t resist writing about Egypt. As you must all know by now, Hosni Mubarak has stepped down from his post as president of Egypt and conceded his power to the military. An amazing triumph. Omar Suleiman, who Mubarak instated as vice president of Egypt, made the announcement of Mubarak’s resignation. Egyptians have gathered in Tahrir Square-or Liberation Square-for nineteen days to overthrow the dictator who has been in office for over thirty years.

This is an incredible moment in history. I am watching live footage of the rally as I write this. The jubilation and celebration of the people gathered in Cairo brought me to tears. These protestors would not stop their uprising until this regime was brought down.  

The revolution began when young Egyptians mobilized using social networking such as Facebook and Twitter. As a result, people started gathering in Cairo. Television broadcasts, especially by Al Jazeera, started covering the protest as it gained momentum. Even after telecommunications and cell phone reception was shut down by the government, more and more people gathered until it reached hundreds of thousands of Egyptians united together.

I must mention that our government had a very close relationship with Mubarak. In an address he made in 2009, Obama stated: “The United States and Egypt have worked together closely for many years, and for many of those years President Mubarak has been a leader and a counselor and a friend to the United States.” As long as Mubarak was in power, especially with the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, the U.S. felt confident in their position in the Middle East. The treaty is now threatened. A sick result of Egypt’s relationship with Israel are the blocked tunnels leading to Gaza from Egypt. These tunnels were used to transfer food and supplies to the Palestinians. This oppression of the Palestinians will continue as long as the support of Israel by Egypt continues, and the U.S. by default.

The liberation of the Egyptian people is a symbol of the power of the people.  I said before, this revolution is live history. It will be in history books for all time. The future is still unsure, but the Egyptian people will not stop until they get everything they are striving for. Mubarak stepped down, but there is still more changes that must come. The Egyptians have demonstrated that change can happen, and oppression does not have to be accepted. Their time has come. I am in deep admiration of the Egyptian people. They are an example for all of us.

---