The Insecure City: Space, Power, and Mobility in Beirut

by Kristin V. Monroe

Fifteen years after the end of a protracted civil and regional war, Beirut broke out in violence once again, forcing residents to contend with many forms of insecurity, amid an often violent political and economic landscape. Providing a picture of what ordinary life is like for urban dwellers surviving sectarian violence, The Insecure City captures the day-to-day experiences of citizens of Beirut moving through a war-torn landscape.

 

While living in Beirut, Kristin Monroe conducted interviews with a diverse group of residents of the city. She found that when people spoke about getting around in Beirut, they were also expressing larger concerns about social, political, and economic life. It was not only violence that threatened Beirut’s ordinary residents, but also class dynamics that made life even more precarious. For instance, the installation of checkpoints and the rerouting of traffic—set up for the security of the elite—forced the less fortunate to alter their lives in ways that made them more at risk. Similarly, the ability to pass through security blockades often had to do with an individual’s visible markers of class, such as clothing, hairstyle, and type of car. Monroe examines how understandings and practices of spatial mobility in the city reflect social differences, and how such experiences led residents to be bitterly critical of their government.

 

In The Insecure City , Monroe takes urban anthropology in a new and meaningful direction, discussing traffic in the Middle East to show that when people move through Beirut they are experiencing the intersection of citizen and state, of the more and less privileged, and, in general, the city’s politically polarized geography.

Genres: Nonfiction

204 pages, Paperback

Published March 15, 2016

Reviews

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm guessing this was Monroe's expanded PhD thesis for Stanford University (Department of Anthropology) and was a surprisingly entertaining and enlightening read. As a piece of urban sociology there is much of use to the academic, but this is a rare treat in academia- the book that benefits non-academics- in this instance the traveller/ newly-arrived to Beirut. One can read all the modern histories of Lebanon and Beirut be they Fisk or Hirst and watch every documentary available from the archives of Al Jazeera, including the 15 hour epic War of Lebanon- none of it helps when trying to travel, work and stay sane in post-war Beirut. The reconstruction and reconciliation is built on secrets, lies, fear of others and has created The Insecure City.
Monroe's book, released in 2016, has five main chapters covering 'The Privatised City,' 'The Space of War,' 'Politics and Public Space,' 'Securing Beirut,' 'The Chaos of Driving,' [Essential chapter] and 'There Is No State' book-ended by an introduction, and a conclusion that will need to be updated in the not-too-distant future.
The research was conducted out of necessity in three phases, October 2004-June 2006 [presumably the July war stopped play]; Summer 2010 and June 2013. Seven years after her research has been completed almost all of it still holds true today. Indeed, I found myself mentally awarding myself points when the text described a situation or anecdote that has happened to me within the last six months, in the same way you mentally reward yourself for spotting in-jokes and cultural references in episodes of South Park.
The Insecure City confirms a lot of suspicions, Beirut was rebuilt not for the Lebanese, but for the rich international jet set, and that post-war reconstruction has been an undoubted failure, with or without Syrian political interference. One only has to look a the news reels pre-April 1975 of Downtown to Hamra and compare it to the urban 'cosmopolitan' soulless mess on display now. What goes unstated inn the text is how this may have contributed to Lebanese attitudes towards Social Class and their national character and how they are perceived by the rest of the world- I have lost count of the amount of times I have been told words to the effect of, 'The Lebanese are a bit up themselves, especially the women.' There are hints of this being a prevailing view in the text but no concrete sociological data.
What shines through in The Insecure City, and you can see it with your own eyes, is that 'reconstruction and reconciliation' actually translates as 'we need to create a city for the political elite that provides security from unwanted and undesirable populations.' The end result is a state of constant fear for all citizens always on guard for when things will 'kick off' again.
When you combine the sale of public land to private investors (beaches and parks gone), the Green Line still being a mental reality, roadblocks and other forms of traffic diversion and parking prevention as a means of security for the wealthy few etc it does not take much imagination to see why driving around the city is a nightmare and the ISF Traffic Police department is ineffective. You have a population that is disconnected from the decision-making process in the city, so lawmakers and their laws are corrupt in the eyes of the many. In the eyes of the wealthy few, any traffic violations committed by them can be squared away by 'wasta.'
However, as I write this, there is a 'Revolution' going on outside over Government corruption and 'missing' public funds that manifests itself every evening as a punch-up between the unemployed and the ISF with the odd bit of bank vandalism thrown in. Why did this not occur before? Especially during the Arab Spring when it was fashionable to highlight Government failures as Tunisia, Libya and Egypt demonstrated. Another question that enters my head is, is this a peculiarity to Beirut? I suspect it isn't having witnessed similar urban changes and their effects on society across the GCC countries (Dubai being the most obvious example) and even in India, specifically Ahmedabad- modern Western shops for the idle rich, need a car for mobility, but nowhere to park- lots of measures in the name of traffic management in place, but in reality have more to do with counter-terrorism than anything else.
Overall, essential reading if visiting the formally great city known as Beirut, and also essential for the casual reader who would like some explanation as to why modern life is so rubbish. I hope Prof. Monroe releases a revised edition once the 'Revolution' is over.

[May Massijeh · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first urban anthropology book, having been in Beirut, this provided an insight into the power dynamics that exist in space and how people negotiate these daily encounters.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall really enjoyed this save for a bit in chapter 6 which bugged me to no end. Monroe mentions frequently hearing a phrase which she translates as meaning "there is no state" during conversations with people in Beirut regarding the lack of local traffic enforcement, then extrapolates at length as to why Lebanese specifically refer to a lack of "state" rather than to a lack of "government." The issue is that this isn't actually happening. The word being translated as state, دولة (dowlé), while strictly carrying that meaning, is used basically interchangeably to mean government as well in Lebanese Arabic. Just a weird, frustrating case of discourse analysis getting garbled through a layer of overly literal translation.

I don't want to make that one complaint be my entire review so I'll reiterate that the rest was generally fantastic. Really interesting ethnographic study of 2000s Beirut through the lens of urban mobility. Highly recommended!

[Christen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing!!! Having lived in Beirut for a year, it put into words so many things that I noticed but didn't necessarily connect together. Kristen V. Monroe's main argument is that physical mobility in Beirut reflects larger power, class, and other social realities of Beirut and Lebanon as a whole. The way that she integrated theory into a well-written, lively, and clear discussion was simply superb! Her stories were engaging and added depth to the book overall. I leave this book (as sadly, it ended) feeling that I gained knowledge not only about Beirut but also cities in general.