
Tilt; emotional upset, mental confusion, or frustration in which a player adopts a less than optimal strategy, usually resulting in poor play.
The past few years in Lebanon have felt like a game of Texas Hold’em. A group of people, known or unknown to us, have been sitting around a round table, playing with a set of cards, betting our past, present, and future away. And though we too, have a place on the table, it feels as though we have constantly been dealt the skip card in UNO, unable to take matters into our own hands. We’ve been on tilt for the past few rounds.
This issue of Al Rawiya intends to explore how these pent up feelings of frustration, confusion, and pain have translated into the way we deal with the multi-pronged crisis currently taking over Lebanon. How have our current mental states affected the way we work and function in society? How have these wildcard-esque events translated onto the party scene? How will women manage to maintain their independence under the current structure of marriage in Lebanon?
Though things may seem out of hand, the articles we propose in this issue reflect the different ways in which members of society in Lebanon are reclaiming their places in life, or looking for new roles which they can fill to adapt to the never-ending changes. This issue aims to show that everyone deserves A Seat At the Table.

Change is when cavemen learned how to use fire. When empires were torn down to make space for new ones. When the leaves on the tree change from green to orange, brown, or yellow. Change is natural, if not necessary to keep up with the progression of life. In the last couple years alone, the world witnessed many events that uprooted our sense of normalcy, and replaced it with new norms better fitting for the times. Just like any other country, Lebanon has changed a lot over the past few decades. Many of these changes were expected, and some were not so expected – as we take into consideration the different historical and political factors involved.
This issue of Al Rawiya intends to explore the different changes Lebanon has experienced in the past few decades, with a focus on how major events such as the coronavirus pandemic, economic crisis, the Beirut blast, and shifting global political dynamics have affected the current state of things. How has the economy affected our mental health and our so-called national love of raiding the dance floor? How have recent efforts in restoring the Lebanese environment panned out? Join us as we try to answer these questions and more.
DISCOVER OUR ISSUE 5 ARTICLES BELOW
Zeid Hamdan: the Power of Music in Love & Politics
Credits: Zeid Hamdan playing his guitar – Photo Courtesy of Sachyn Mital Foreword: I met...
The Three Stooges – Escapism, Hedonism, and the Lebanese Nightlife
Credits: Light shining on rock formations during Resonate by The Ballroom Blitz, The first 2...
Married Women & Registry Records in Lebanon: A Tale of Forced Submission
Credits: Photo Courtesy of Emma Jowdy I was always seeking love. I followed it...
Mental Health & Economic Performance in a Crisis-marred Lebanon
I turn on my laptop to write, blank head, I turn it off. Turn...
Escapism in Lebanon: Placing a Band-aid on a Bullet Wound
“It’s only in the loudest moments that we hear the silenced screams of our soul.”...
ES·CA·PADE
We all need somewhere we can go to get lost in our imagination, thoughts and ourselves. Listen when you’re feeling a sense of daze and longing to escape and let the music take you on an adventure.

RIWAYETNA
روايـتــنــــــــــــــــــــــــــــا
Each and every one of us has a story to tell.
Stories that take us back in time to before we left our home countries, stories of new beginnings, or stories of searching for “home”.
EDITOR'S PICKS
Dispossession, Gender Identity, and Wellness in Lebanon: Marginalized Refugees Endure Growing Barriers to Basic Healthcare
Introduction Over the past decade, more than 1.5 million Syrian...
Beyond Dams: Turning to Alternative Solutions for Water in Lebanon
Author’s Note: For a country the size of Lebanon, hosting...
Petroleum Prosperity in Lebanon: a Reachable Reality, or a Distant Myth?
A Chronicle of Lebanon’s Oil and Gas Pursuits There is...
Fann w Fenjen: Carlo Kassabian and Badih Ghanem
Foreword: Having moved to Paris in August, I was excited...
August 4th Investigation: Challenging a Regime Rife with Impunity
“This time, it’s different” has become a rallying cry amongst...


