ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the roles that populism can play in war. It focuses on leftist political parties during the early Lebanese Civil War era (1968–1976) and analyzes essays, letters, and cartoons in their newspapers. With special attention to uses and visualizations of the term al-sha‘b (“the people”), it argues that these groups deployed populist discourse to forge coalitions and define tangible enemies. Findings contribute to the history of modern Lebanon, writing populism into this period, as well as populism studies, demonstrating the terms by which populism can mobilize people to fight and work to justify violence.
