The Life of a Teen in a Collapsed State
Stories from my life in Lebanon (with context on how we got here)
An irony, a tragedy, a satire of what was my beloved country… a vicious mockery of the mighty cedar I love… a carcass of a once flourishing culture and lively community.
I am living through an unprecedented time: the potentially most severe economic crisis since the mid-1800s according to the World Bank. Throughout this piece, the facts on the ground are as mortifying as the numbers you’ve many times read if not significantly worse. I will cover the context, the reality, and the solutions. This article is a piece I dedicate to Lebanon the Phoenix, the Warrior and the Reborn: My Lebanon.
Lebanon is a country located on the eastern coastline of the Mediterranean. The nation’s significance is historically demonstrated as a major port for trade.
After a civil war that lasted 15 years and killed ~100,000 people, most of them innocent civilians, the economy was rebuilt largely on a Ponzi Scheme in the banking sector. Thus, a state of misleading stability followed.
The latter faltered in 2017 and collapsed in October 2019 when banks struggled to keep up with the entire scheme. Inevitably, this lead to a collapse of Lebanon’s currency, the Lebanese Lira (L.L.).
One USD had been worth 1507.5 L.L. since 1997 until it jumped to 1600 L.L. in October 2019. By Christmas 2019, the USD had rapidly jumped to 2000 L.L.
After Michel Hayek, a clairvoyant that has become a household name in Lebanon’s New Year’s Eve programming, made the prediction that the dollar will reach 3000 L.L. two weeks into January, I worriedly listened in as my family debated wether the increase will plateau after 3000 L.L…. I wish it had, I wish it had.
The dollar continued it’s reach for the stars and was worth 8400 L.L. by March 2020. Furthermore, this massive inflation was exacerbated by the newly born COVID-19 Pandemic.
“Should we… leave?”
I had overheard my parent’s conversations on immigration and I couldn’t bear thinking of it. Actually, I had been still struggling to digest the rapidly soaring prices that removed basic dairy products such as milk and cheese from our table.
By the way, My classmates and I were 13 at the time and we were forced to endure turmoil not only on a social level due to the rapid spread of COVID-19, but also on an economic level thanks to the crumbling currency and soaring prices.
Why? to the leaders and warlords in power: Why? Why do you do this? Why do you never listen? Why did you rob children of their childhood and the young from their lives? Have you ever considered the presence of suffering humans under your tyrannical rule? Why are
219 of my compatriots… gone. 7,000 of my brothers and sisters, wounded. 300,000 people homeless? You burned my country, and slaughtered her people, you plundered my capital and buried her people. You are not forgiven and never will be. The imprints of innocent blood will soak your suits and robes forever.
I had just stepped over the doorstep to buy food when an explosion rocked my world forever… Lebanon is forever shaken. Images of my grandma’s tears as she saw Beirut in ruin, the anguish drawn on my mother’s as she saw Beirut, our Beirut destroyed, will never leave my heart or my mind.
It drives me with burning passion every day, at school, at home, in society. In reality, this colossal event pushed me over the edge. After that incident I wanted to raise my voice and fight using the power of words and stories.
