Buenos Aires

Cine Fertil (Creative/Fertile Cinema) is an Arab-Latin Arts group.

They regularly hold Arab-Latin Arts Festivals.

They event seems to be sponsored by the

• Syrian-Lebanese Club of Buenso Aires
• Cine Fertil
• Dimashk (An Arab Artisan Group)
• Ninawa Daher Foundation

The last, the Ninawa Daher Foundation, was named after a beloved Agentine lawyer, newscaster, TV hostess of Maronite-Christian-Lebanese ancestry. It is a charity which helps women.

Ninawa Daher died rather young – she was 31 – in a car crash in 2011.

Argentina is about 9% Arab. Many, if not most Latin-Arabs, are intermarried and not pure Arab; but Arabs are a large enough community that she had quite a following.

They are running a festival this month in Buenos Aires about Arab-Latin arts.

If you are in Buenos Aires, check it out.

It may seem odd that I, an American, would know about this.

A little over 2 years ago, I was trying to learn some Spanish by going to YouTube. From past experience, I know that South Americans speak better Spanish than Spaniards. Spaniards have a lisp and cannot pronounce the letter s.

The Spaniards of Madrid say E^thpaña, not España.

It is like talking to Daffy Duck.

So, I went to check out some videos from Argentina and Chile. The Latinos of South America, particularly Argentina and Chile, tend to be of European extraction, and speak a much more educated Spanish, without the lisp of the Madrilenos (citizens of Madrid) of Spain.

I accidentally found a video about a video about a show called DESDE EL ALJIBE (FROM THE WELL), a program aimed at Arab-Latins in Argentina.

The name comes from the community Water Well where news and gossip is traded among Arabs in their communities. In America, we get our gossip at the office Water Cooler. Same principle.

Click after click, and I found dozens of videos about DESDE EL ALJIBE.

Ninawa Daher was the co-host.

I could not understand all their Spanish, but I was able to get the general idea.

One click lead to another, and I discovered a massive – and I do mean massive – Arab subculture in South America. Not just in Argentina, but in Chile (which has a massive Palestinian population), Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay, Mexico, all of Latin America.

Most fascinating is that almost no one in America, or Europe, knows about this. The only time our news mentions Arabs in South America is when someone arrests a Hezbollah operative.

Our media never tells us that there are 25-30 Million Arabs in South America. Ninety-five perent (95%) of them, or more, are Christian. Many of these Arab-Latins had ancestors who went to South America around 1900, when they were fleeing Turkish Muslim persecution.

Latin immigrants came from Syria, Lebanon, and Israel/Palestine as well. Most were Christian. A few were Muslim; but most of their children or grandchildren are Christian. They assimilate well.

They tend to be well off, and elite, in Latin America. Yet, we never hear about this. They present an image of a successful, Westernized, educated, elite ethnic group that we never hear about.

We never hear how mainstream Arab culture has become in South America. I found dozens, if not hundreds, of videos of Latins with names indicating Spanish, Italian, or German origins who have taken up Arab Dance, and appear in Arab Dance shows. Check out my Dancer of the Day Category.

This is not some salacious trend. Arab Dance is taught to young girls, and not all are of Arab descent. In fact it is taught at Catholic Schools. (Click Here). It is considered cultural.

This is seen as a positive thing.

Just as American Jews are discovering the Jewish roots, these Arab-Latins are re-discovering their Arab roots, it seems.

There is a positive side to the Arabs, and South America presents it.

What you say? Arabs in the land of the gauchos?!

I asked the same thing. Gauchos and Arabs do not mix.

I soon found out how wrong I was. Apparently, Gauchos came from Moorish exiles from Spain who went to South America. Ninawa Daher did a piece on DESDE EL ALJIBE about the history of the Arab – Gaucno connection that almost no one knows anything about.

BTW: Though once considered ridiculous, more and more historians are coming to the unavoidable conclusion that the Guachos have some Arab/Moorish input in their history.

It is two years later, since I ran into these videos – almost by accident. My Spanish is still terrible. I have trouble making out what they are saying but I have discovered into a massive subculture that is astounding.

I wish I were younger. I would learn re-learn my Spanish, and learn Arabic as well.

Now, do not get me wrong. I remain suspicious of extremist Islam; but our media ignores a positive side to the Arabs which should be encouraged.

I am neither Arab, Hispanic, Latin, Muslim, nor Jewish. I am an American Christian of European ancestry. I just find this fascinating. I am amazed how few people here in the United States know about this.

This ignorance – which is fostered by our media – is a story in and of itself.

July 3, 2020 – Edited: Had to replace a dead video link.