'Screw Lebanon': Racist Lebanese song mocking Syrians infuriates refugees

Calls for a Lebanese TV channel to be shut down spread as a song mocking Syrian refugees goes viral.

2 min read

The New Arab

25 Apr, 2018

The song sparked anger across the internet [YouTube]

A racist song mocking Syrian refugees which aired on national Lebanese TV has sparked anger across the Middle East after going viral on social media.

The song sarcastically starts with "how nice, look at the Syrians on the Lebanese lands", then proceeds to perpetuate racist stereotypes while claiming they have more privileges in Syria than Lebanese nationals.

"We are now the minority and they are the majority. My neighbour has a room with a sink and tap," the song adds, implying that Syrian refugees in Lebanon live in abundance.

A stereotype that they are overpopulating Lebanon by having large families is also mentioned: "Two people entered a room a few summers ago and now behold the room has a dozen and more."

Before the Syrian war began in 2011, Lebanon had a population of around four million people. It has since taken in more than a million - possibly even two million - Syrian refugees.

The song also makes fun of the fact that a large number of taxi drivers in Lebanon are now Syrians, mocking their accent.

"I rode a taxi for a personal visit - the driver came and said shlonik ya sabeya [how are you young lady]?"

The song was published by independent TV station al-Jadeed and sparked anger across the region:

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Translation: Screw the mother of Lebanon - its government and people are childrens of whores. Never forget how we allowed you in our country.

Lebanon has long been denounced for its structural racism towards Syrian refugees.

Human Rights Watch on Friday criticised Lebanese municipalities for what it called the unjustifiable expulsion of hundreds of Syrians from their homes since 2016, as tension towards refugees simmers.

"At least 13 municipalities in Lebanon have forcibly evicted at least 3,664 Syrian refugees from their homes and expelled them from the municipalities, apparently because of their nationality or religion," from the start of 2016 through to the end of March this year, the rights group said.

Syrian refugees have also been used by politicians as a scapegoating mechanism to blame the country's problems on them and reiterating calls for Syrians to "go home".

Regardless, Syrians called on Prime Minister Saad Hariri to respond to the racism:

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Translation: Saad Hariri, answer me. The whole video can be found on YouTube. The racist people behind this video must be punished. The Syrian people are not a tool for Lebanese political disputes. Al-Jadeed channel is trash and only trash.

Some wanted revenge:

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Translation: May God give them what they deserve

Among the enraged Syrians, some non-Syrian Arabs found the whole thing funny:

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Translation: hahahahaha