Accessibility

 Movement, naturally, played a big role in the revolution as it delineated the periphery of the protests in the cities. Certain areas became activated depending on a number of factors, and people followed invisible “desired paths” to go from one location to another. Whether it was physical barriers by security officials, shortcuts between the popular areas with the largest crowds, or even avoided areas due to high tension, the protesters unknowingly created a unique mapping system. Downtown was restructured irrelevant to the pre existing functions or planned streets, as the people marked their own territories.

Below you will find the man-made restructuring of the city during the pivotal phases of:

1. [ Mid to late Oct, 2019 ]

2. [ Late Oct - Dec 2019 ]

3. [ Jan 2020 - March 2020 ]

Collective Memory 

For the first couple of months, there seemed to be a natural order of things. Riad El Solh, the street leading up to the Serai, was heavily barricaded and became a hotspot for riots. It was an urban corridor, with street vendors, art, and multiple performances that lead up to a heavily defended zone, where retaliation from security forces would usually erupt from. Walking from Riad El Solh to Martyr Square, the mood would shift from tempered and provocative chants towards more ‘family friendly’ type protests, a mere couple of meters away. One could step out of the dense crowds, walk a couple of steps, and buy a snack form a street vendor and relax on the pavement. Between Martyr Square and Riad El Solh, in a parking lot in front of Azarieh, the space was dedicated to hosting multiple community discussions by professionals in multiple fields. This also continued onto the martyr square strip, where tents were also set up for the similar purposes. Clusters would also gather in front of the Mosque; however, protesting would be generally safer around this area and mainly where families would be found. Martyr Square became a hub for tent dwellers and artists, making it a resting stop for many. 

Informalities

 In the midst of all the chaos, the street vendors were always one step away from the crowds of protesters, which evolved into a collective joke that they had a sixth sense of knowing when things would get serious. Throughout the revolution, the informal economy reclaimed the once empty streets. They sold street food, loved equally in the region, and brought with them an array of smells and sounds that animated the streets. Previously, the thought of dining at Downtown for the mere price of 3,000 LL would have been a laughable matter, but the presence of street vendors bridged the gap of the social imbalance within this bourgeoisie neighbourhood.

 Tent Dwellers 

From the very beginning tents were set up to host a variety of community functions, which ranged from lawyers, red cross volunteers, to political science professors ready to assist the people. However, as the revolution progressed it brought in more permanent tent dwellers. They either consisted of hardcore activists, who were sacrificing their regular day to day to take part in the protests, or people who had lost their jobs as a result of the failing country and were forced to the streets, or even groups of “hippies” who are always on the lookout for an alternative form of living.  This particular example was of a tent set up parallel to Martyrs’ square, which was later torn down by authorities. They had managed to separate their space into sleeping & living quarters, where they would host any protester that needed rest and even assisting in first aid during clashes. Many people took shelter inside as tear gas was being fired; thus, creating a safe space for some protesters.