Christian fish, Muslims shark swimming through Cairo traffic
First came the fish bumper stickers, imported from the United States and pasted on cars by members of Egypt's Coptic minority as a symbol of their Christianity. Before long, some Muslims responded with their own bumper stickers: fish-hungry sharks.
It's not exactly war at sea, but the competing symbols that have cropped up on Cairo streets are a tiny reminder of the tensions between Egypt's Copts and majority Muslims. Some Christians are annoyed at the Muslim response.
"All I wanted to say is that I am a Christian, kind of expressing my Coptic identity," said 25-year-old Miriam Greiss, who has a fish sticker on her car. "I think choosing a shark doesn't make sense, as if someone is saying, `I am a violent, bloody creature, look at me."'
Emad, a Muslim, laughed when asked about the competing symbols but was unapologetic about the two shark stickers on his car.
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Clarence Sexton | 8/31/2009
