Even if the protest only includes hundreds or a few thousands, its participants, its supporters and the followers of its organizers will call it a “million man march”, as the expression has become a “label” for any protest that takes place in Tahrir Square regardless of the number of those present or even of their audience. It is only natural in post-revolutionary Egypt for expressing one's opinion, as well as for the signs of the revolution which come in stages, to be welcomed. Yet it is important to realize that protests are a means, not an end, and that expressing one's opinion must at the end of the day turn into conduct that would benefit those who had called for such protests and supported them, even if they are the entire people – exactly as it happened when the Egyptian people forced former President Hosni Mubarak to step down from his post. Egypt should be expecting yet another million man march next Friday, called for by various forces that support a secular state “in response to the million man march of the Friday of Unity” that gathered on Tahrir Square on July 29, and enjoyed the increased participation of supporters of the Islamist movement. My guess is that the supporters of a secular state are headed towards failure if they believe that their struggle against the Islamists can be settled by million man marches in Tahrir or other squares. This is not because the number of supporters of a secular state is lesser than that of the Islamists in Egypt, but because the “quality” is different. Indeed, the members of Islamist movements have the willingness to gather and congregate, to bear the fast and come out to chant despite the summer heat, then leave the protest without causing any friction with anyone. As for the supporters of a secular state, some of them are secularists, while others among them are Leftists, Nasserists and Liberals. There are also with them those who are not affiliated with any political party and do not hold any political principles or theories, but rather simply citizens who would prefer not to live in a society ruled or controlled by Islamists. Such people only go to protests if they feel that their interests are under threat; and when they do go to protests, they do not stay very long, and in fact their participation is most of time one that is symbolic or of pure form. This is where the discrepancy lies between, on the one hand, the public that supports a secular state, and on the other the elite of those calling for a secular state, who have the willingness to protest or go on hunger strike, and to go all the way to face the competition. Yet more important than estimating numbers in the “issue of the million man marches” is the fact that the supporters of a secular state in Egypt are responding to the message of the “Friday of Unity” in the wrong way. Indeed, it seems as if they felt that whoever shines most on the Square will gain people's votes in the elections, or that the scene of the gathering in Tahrir will drive millions more, come election day, to vote in favor of those who were able to gather the greatest number of people in Tahrir Square! Ever since the Friday of “the Secular State” was announced, it has clearly appeared that those calling for it were uneasy. On the “Second Revolution” page on Facebook, the debate between members asserted the necessity of obscuring the issue of the secular state, so as for simple people not to understand the protest as directed against religion or religiosity. They considered that it would be preferable to call publicly for celebrating the start of Mubarak's trial! They also assert that the Revolution continues until all of its goals are achieved, and object to protesters being attacked on Tahrir Square during their communal Iftar! This is while knowing that everyone is aware of the fact that the protest's main goal is to send a message to the Islamists, support the idea of the secular state and respond to the “Unity” protest. And as long as you are afraid to proclaim your goals, you will lose part of your audience. What matters is that the symbolic figures of the secular state, from among the elites, intellectuals and politicians, have stayed in place on television shows, theorizing, planning, commenting and warning strongly and insistently. None of them has called for taking to the streets or for dealing with ordinary citizens. No plans have been agreed on to provide services to the masses of people in slums and impoverished neighborhoods, or to implement political awareness programs for citizens in villages and impoverished areas. None of this has taken place, but what has is the call for a “Secular State” million man march. It is a good positive call, but one that is not sufficient to drive people and convince them to vote in the coming elections for secular state candidates. Indeed, people vote most of the time for those who serve them and uphold their interests, not for those who protest for them or through them. Those who call for a secular state have become the stars of “clowning” television shows during Ramadan, making people more sarcastic and arousing questions over the extent to which they understand and are aware of the challenge being faced by their country and by their people, most of whom merely seek to lead a decent life, whether in a secular state, an Islamist state, or even a million man state.
