Rewriting the codes of the possible. Culture in action and semiotic repertories in protests and post-protest Lebanon (2019-2021)
Èlia Susanna i López.
This Working Paper analyses the 2019 Lebanese protests through the lens of Swidler’s theory of culture in action, highlighting how cultural repertoires and symbolic codes shape political change and democratisation. The research shows that the protests opened a “cultural window” in which dominant codes, such as sectarian loyalty and clientelist logics, were contested and partially reconfigured, creating new moral and civic practices that continue to influence everyday political life. While formal institutions have remained largely unchanged, semiotic inversions, recomposed repertoires, and expanded civic engagement (particularly among women and younger generations) demonstrate how culture can enable political innovation even under structural constraints. The paper argues that effective democracy support, including by the European Union, should engage not only with formal institutions but also with the cultural frameworks through which citizens interpret crises, coordinate action, and hold authorities accountable, thereby strengthening long-term civic agency and democratic resilience.
EMBRACE Workin Paper 05