A trip i would not support myself and my parents what im trying to do but its a dream to put a beautifully with. One funky deposit on it with me because im i have Serious Problems on a personal level and i was unable to live there but what im going to. Want to know their story. Find it can provide the information for more grants. They called in arabic the word means revolution people in lebanon have been protesting for weeks. Christina a 21 year old student is on the front line in the capital beirut ive heard that right now is doing that. I mean at the end of the day what is the point of going and studying. The gulf. Its Early Morning in the mountains on the outskirts of beirut this is where christina who studies media at a private university lives with her parents. The family is well to do but theyre worried because Living Conditions are getting worse in lebanon for the middle class is too there are few prospects for young people those. Powers our country going to thrive if everybody keeps leaving but also how are we going to stay here if theres nothing for us to stay for for me revolution is yes getting together putting pressure on the government try to change everything but for me i dont like it when they block roads and when they are tires and when when the very day. When roadblocks were erected christina and her brother were caught and. It brought back memories of the civil war she was just a young girl when whole districts were separated from one another. She started crying and hugged us because i mean you cant not i guess when youve lived the things theyve lived you cant not have this fear of civil war breaking out again because i mean its not something pleasant so. Yeah you can see it in i mean my mom is a little bit. Through nothing yet i always say i when i was their age and even younger i was much tougher when i became a mother. And now were. At before the office of a more. New even though i was never afraid but i think its there you know. You still want to have to live with again yeah of course i dont want you to live it. Not me i dont want you to there were many women. But like despite her mothers fears christina will not stop protesting. People start todays demonstration is set to be big shes going with her friend gianna whom she knows from university they had a similar childhood living with their families in the gulf states for a long time because the situation was so insecure in lebanon. This is quite typical there are thought to be about 14000000 lebanese People Living abroad and only about 6000000 in lebanon itself. For now. I actually really want to mean. Like i saw myself. Continuing my life abroad and theres like this new found new found love for 11 i think. In the past few weeks ive grown more attached to it than i ever have but. There is chaos but this time its caused by the protesters they have chosen to demonstrate on the National Holiday to show the government how much support they have. The middle classes are rising up against politicians who have failed to keep this state from going bankrupt. The frustrations with bubbling for decades but if im not mistaken it was because of all the necessary time to think of the start of the paramedics and i start in the dark saying. Things like cigarettes. The protestors are also angry about widespread corruption this entire district in central beirut was developed at the behest of the former Prime Minister who profited massively at the cost of local business owners. All of this is closed all of this arent even like. Taken. Most of the population could never afford to live here its dead capital for the owners. As things stand now there are more cats than people. But there were people who lived here who had stores here before all of this happened and they would either force them out of their homes pay them a small fee. And everything that happened here just cost or theyre like renting out for god knows how much higher the price so its really its absolute corruption its not fair. The main reproach the protesters have against lebanons ruling class is corruption they say politicians have led the country to bankruptcy the state has massive debts with Interest Rates consuming half of government revenue the infrastructure has suffered all over the country theres no reliable water or electricity supply. The financial crisis is very noticeable in stores where prices have shot up. And i. Think theres a coffee used to cost 2000 lebanese pounds that was 2500. And this cheese used to cost to 1000. 00 now is 2750. 00. Prices started going up weeks ago and continue to rise which the roof you to hold it out again in the moment and if you and 5 or 600. 00 a week how can you afford this. Show and what i used to spend a month is now not enough. To cover a week when theres some you can see thats many of. Us i recently heard that were running out of grain which is massive. If we keep running out of these things and we dont have the money to import those of course and stir fry thats very scary because theyre going to big families and people who cant. Get food and. This is another reason why she and the other protesters refused to give up. Today their meeting opposite they favor groups a Cultural Center and museum about the 15 year long civil war which killed 150000 people between 1975990. Todays protests are about unity bringing together all the 18 officially recognized religious groups in lebanon the protesters are walking along the former line of demarcation the green line which once divided east and west beirut separating mostly christian am mostly muslim neighborhoods. And extended. Family. Get out they saying get out you are all corrupt. And then they continue on to martyr square which existed well before the civil war and commemorates martyrs executed there under the ottomans its in the heart of the capital now former activists and people affected by the civil war are also commemorated here. We go to. My grandmother and great friends and she believes in change through basically although she makes you say so soon i think you know. She did live through the civil war as well. Although she had to carry an belonging i think she just gave up. And she sees me and her daughter were all you know all fed up with this is them so she gets to you know sectarian divisions are what. Contributed to the civil war and the aftermath and thought they meant that they paid the big role but for us its more about breaking this this ridiculous wall down there. John is a druze with palestinian roots christina is a christian with a syrian palestinian and italian bridge but they both consider themselves simply lebanese. As just christinas boyfriend omar who is a sunni muslim this has logistical implications more than anything else its not an issue for the us but sometimes theyre in for a bit more conservative. As a crimp so what happens is when 2 people from the from want to get married they have to change their religion on paper and. Were. Going to do it very informally and they just do it for the crowd if you simply can get married but its really frowned upon by yeah the rest of the family usually when someone wants to convert so you know like why did why are you going to convert for the why the why dont they convert for you. If mixed couples have children they automatically take on the fathers religion in this case and he children would be muslim like oh my generally christinas christian parents accept him. But i think they like you know what i know they love and they love remove my mom will sometimes. See you christine i love all that if only you were it was like if only i looked like i know one of them except for the person you know. This would not be an issue at all if civil marriage existed in lebanon and women generally had more rights but according to the World Economic forums gender gap report lebanon ranks 140. 00 out of 149 we kind of. Thats a shark the idea of a woman as a mother but we dont really go beyond that and see that shes an individual and a human and she she can achieve just as much as a man. So the women here are also fighting for their rights and using a particular strategy if the situation gets dicey they go out onto the front line and a calculated move to contain the violence they hope to keep the peace by standing between the police and male demonstrators and effective stressful tactics. I was crying and screaming at them to stop telling you enough is enough all the fights that ive seen that happen between men and they always happen over some city misunderstanding that escalates so what we are trying to do is just kind of calm everyone down. Overall the protests have been peaceful and the idea is for them to continue in the same spirit. Christina and her fellow demonstrators know that there can only be real change if they show they are determined its going to last until we get what we want. Which is going to take time and i think its important for people to realize that its going to take time but i think its also important for the people in power to realize that we will not stop until we get what we want if it drags on till christmas been until Christmas Day here i will be a. Lot. Like god. Always crossing boundaries and jesus and into the abyss of the human soul to ratchet down a handsome. At least a new song will serve us no need to be false no more i mean with that song you know if. This is plain sight singing cant. Blame me. Im sensing reveal hidden talents. Misapplied. That. As long as. Im not just going to go to day nothing would change you know the banks. And so whats the language of the bank. Speaking the truth global news that matters you made for mines. A few things to you because they serve the truth better than the facts just in fact. Was