It’s been almost one year since I gathered my chaotic thoughts into a piece describing what life on the ground was like in Lebanon, shortly after the Beirut port explosion. On August 4, 2020, Beirut – my home city – was torn apart by the negligence and corruption of shameless criminals who wear suits and pretend to run the Lebanese government. With the blood of more than 200 victims and 6,500 injured citizens on their hands, these government officials have somehow managed to stay in power as if nothing had happened. They’ve attempted to obstruct the judicial procedures and the path to justice all year long, and as a result, no one has been held guilty yet of storing dangerously huge amounts of explosive chemicals at the Beirut port in close proximity to neighborhoods and offices. The explosion devastatingly destroyed half of Beirut, Lebanon’s capital.
Unfortunately, the Lebanese people have not been able to catch a breath. Over the past two years only, Lebanon has witnessed the worst economic meltdown in more than a century of the country’s history, and one of the world’s largest non-nuclear explosions ever. The country has been spiraling down a black hole of an unprecedented economic crisis, and there’s no rock bottom to hit. The crises just keep worsening every day.
Lebanon is on the brink of becoming a failed state. Nutrition-wise, around 77% of households in the country are unable to buy enough food anymore. Health-wise, there’s a severe shortage of medicine and medical supplies at pharmacies across the country, and hospitals are calling for international intervention to save their patients from immediate death. With a poverty rate that now exceeds 50%, Lebanese people are finding it much harder to make a living with frequent power outages and exponential daily hikes in gasoline prices.
In the absence of responsible government officials, the citizens of Lebanon have taken it upon themselves to mobilize and try to combat the consequences of the dire humanitarian crisis that Lebanon is currently witnessing. As a Lebanese expat, I’ve also been consistently looking for ways to give back and help people back home in any way I can, so I strongly urge you to lend a helping hand to the Lebanese people as they fight their toughest battle against injustice and corruption yet.
Given that the Lebanese currency has lost more than 90% of its value so far, lots of civil society organizations and humanitarian foundations are in serious need for donations to keep their operations running. It’s almost impossible to believe that the civil society, composed of university students, young professionals, engineers, artists, among others, have been literally volunteering to handle the government’s responsibilities, mitigating the blow of the economic crisis and handling disaster relief. Credible organizations that are seeking donations include the Lebanese Red Cross, Children’s Cancer Center of Lebanon, Beit El Baraka, Live Love Beirut, Lebanese Food Bank, and Embrace, Lebanon’s primary mental health hotline.
On the other hand, several initiatives have opened up remote volunteering positions. The Volunteer Circle keeps an updated list of volunteering opportunities to help out with relief efforts in-person and remotely. Several universities as well have been partnering with local organizations and asking for additional volunteer support, including the American University of Beirut’s Center for Civic Engagement and Community Service.
Finally, and most importantly, it’s crucial to continue spreading the word about the horrific situation in Lebanon. Whether it’s by staying informed about regular developments, holding discussion circles, or just sharing statistics and facts, the Lebanese people need to know that there are international communities that are offering them the highest levels of moral support, too.
Lebanon is frequently described as a “phoenix rising from the ashes,” and the Lebanese people have always been commended for their resilience and their ability to bounce back after every war and crisis they’ve endured. However, this is not the time to ask the Lebanese people to hold onto their resilience.
We are absolutely exhausted.
There are no words that can describe what it feels to watch our country completely collapse so rapidly. There’s only so much we can do. We will do all what we can, and we will deeply appreciate all the support available to help us salvage what’s left of our society and country in time for the upcoming 2022 municipal, parliamentary, and presidential elections, when we will hopefully vote all those criminals out of power – once and for all.