Anti-colonial protest itself generated Egyptian national collective identity

Evidence

For the first time, Egyptian society, in all its shapes, classes, and perspectives, seemed to stand shoulder to shoulder in support of Zaghlül. To one eyewitness, the news of the arrests was like an explosion in every Egyptian’s ears, and all, to the last individual, rose in protest. This newly cohesive crowd reveled in the act of joining together, of transforming itself into a collective instead of being transformed by the unilateral actions of Great Britain into just another British colony. On one level, the demonstrations allowed Egyptians to see each other in positions of power and protest, as they wanted to be seen, and not as subjugated, colonized people. — Eve M. Troutt Powell, A Different Shade of Colonialism_…, 821

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to theories of nationalism as performatively constituted through collective action rather than pre-existing.