The second passport

A Lebanese tradition

When the war with Israel broke in 2006, I recall watching on TV big ships transporting Lebanese folks, away from the Mediterranean who look like me, some of them my age, some my classmates, away from death and into hope and life. I wondered what is wrong with me. I was angry with my parents for not getting us a second passport. So we can escape the calamities. Instead we were locked up between the home and the malja’ (shelter).

The second passport is a Lebanese tradition that was born from war trauma, and lack of trust in our system to keep us safe.

The second passport is often a privilege, that Lebanese love to brag about. They even say on their bios on social media, French / Lebanese, even though their DNA is 100% Lebanese and even though they may have never spent more than a week vacation in Paris.

If you are on top of the socioeconomic privilege ladder, you surely have the second passport through well your wealth. It is typically American, Canadian, French or British. Some immigrated during the civil war to “first” world countries, got passports and soon returned to raise their children back home. Others, studied abroad and hired expensive lawyers and made it happen.

Then there are those who got their passports through marriage. My neighbor “fell in love” with the study abroad…