Dua Lipa and Lea Ypi Again Address Albanians: Do Not Give Up, Protests Bring Change and Protect Democracy (VIDEO)

A special conversation between pop music star Dua Lipa and renowned author Lea Ypi has brought attention to an in-depth discussion about democracy, political elites and the importance of protest in today’s society.

In the latest episode of the Service95 Book Club podcast, the pair focused on civic movements in Albania and the message they convey about confronting political apathy.

Dua Lipa commented on one of the protest’s powerful slogans, “Albania Is Not for Sale,” and responded to a question from one of the program’s commenters: “How can we avoid protest fatigue?” This prompted an in-depth discussion about civic movements in Albania.

During the podcast, Lea Ypi said, “It is important to see democracy as something that also lives through these moments of protest, and not to reduce democracy simply to participation in elections.”

Podcast conversation:

Dua Lipa: I would like to hand it over at this point to Service95 readers, because I have some questions from them to share. This question relates to the “Albania Is Not for Sale” protests and asks: “How can we avoid protest fatigue?” – Cassidy

Lea Ypi: I think it is important to see democracy as something that also lives through these moments of protest, and not to reduce democracy simply to participation in elections, not to reduce it to the existing elites, and not to think that we have done our duty simply on the day when we went and chose one representative over another. And to understand that, in these instances, protests can also be creative. They can generate ideas, they can generate projects, and…

Dua Lipa: Yes.

Lea Ypi: For me, it is crucial that we hold on to this and not give in to apathy and cynicism. And here, at the beginning, people were singing, dancing and handing out flowers to the police, so it was simply a truly different way of holding a protest…

Dua Lipa: Yes, of protesting.

Lea Ypi: …which I found truly inspiring and which could serve as an example of how other countries should respond to their elites and to this oligarchic capture of politics.