Diaspora as a (Re)Source: Interactions and Interdependencies between Arab Diaspora Communities in Latin America and their Communities/Countries of Origin

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Diaspora as a (Re)Source: Interactions and Interdependencies between Arab Diaspora Communities in Latin America and their Communities/Countries of Origin

Organizer
Katrin Köster (Research Center Global Dynamics, University of Leipzig), Roberto Cruz Romero (German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies, Berlin)
Venue
Research Centre Global Dynamics, Leipzig University
ZIP
04109
Location
Leipzig
Country
Germany
Takes place
Hybrid
From - Until
31.10.2024 - 02.11.2024
By
Connections Redaktion, Leipzig Research Centre Global Dynamics, Universität Leipzig

This workshop sets out to explore the interactions and interdependencies between Arab diaspora communities in Latin America and their communities/countries of origin on the personal, political, social, economic, and cultural level, with a focus on the time period from the 1940s to the 2020s. In nine panels the participants will discuss topics as diverse as military cooperation, transcontinental artistic networks, trade connections, intellectual exchanges, Palestinian activism in the diaspora, modes of identity formation and the preservation of Arab heritage in Latin American countries.

Diaspora as a (Re)Source: Interactions and Interdependencies between Arab Diaspora Communities in Latin America and their Communities/Countries of Origin

Latin American countries and especially the Arab diaspora communities in these countries are an important political, socioeconomic, and cultural resource for Arab communities in the Levant and the wider Middle East. In recent months, the world has been reminded of this by the numerous Latin American expressions of solidarity with Gaza. Similarly, during the past few years, Arab diaspora communities have rallied to support Syrian refugees and economically drained Lebanese communities. These acts of solidarity are not singular in nature, but are part and parcel of long-lasting and deep-rooted ties between Middle Eastern and Latin American communities.

The ties between these two world regions go back to the late nineteenth century, the era of worldwide labor migration to the Americas. Impoverished Arabs, predominantly Christians but also Druze, Alawis, and Sunni Muslims from the Levant, migrated to the Americas, especially drawn to Latin America. During the 1920s and 1930s, they were joined by a second wave of migrants dominated by intellectuals fleeing from oppression and censorship. Today, particularly Argentina and Brazil, as well as some smaller Latin American countries, are home to huge Levantine Arab communities who have great influence on political, socioeconomic, and cultural developments in both their “new” and “old” home countries.
This workshop sets out to explore the interactions and interdependencies between Arab diaspora communities in Latin America and their communities/countries of origin on the personal, political, social, economic, and cultural level, with a focus on the time period from the 1940s to the 2020s. In nine panels the participants will discuss topics as diverse as military cooperation, transcontinental artistic networks, trade connections, intellectual exchanges, Palestinian activism in the diaspora, modes of identity formation and the preservation of Arab heritage in Latin American countries. All these diverse research papers will shed light on the intricate and complex interactions and interdependencies between Arab diaspora communities and will generate new insights into diverse aspects of South-to-South solidarities between Latin American and Middle Eastern states and communities.
The keynote lecture for this workshop will be held by Prof. Dr. Lily Balloffet, Associate Professor at the Social Sciences Division (Department for Latin American & Latino Studies) at UC Santa Cruz and

author of “Argentina in the Global Middle East” (Stanford University Press, June 2020). In her keynote lecture she will analyze and present 'Middle East Mobilities in the Caribbean Basin'.

This workshop is not public, if you however have a strong academic or personal interest in the workshop or individual panels, please contact Katrin.koester@uni-leipzig.de.

Programm

THURSDAY, 31.10.2024

10:45 – 11:00 - Welcome

11:00 – 12:00 - Panel 1: Socio-Economic Networks
Medeiros Coelho, José Rafael (University of Groningen, Netherlands, online): From Antioch to São Paulo: Entangled Histories and the Formation of Arab Christian Diaspora Networks (1889-1939)
Vogt, Rea (University of Bern, Switzerland, in person): A Diasporic Drink. A Yerba Mate Merchant Family’s trajectory between Mount Lebanon, Patagonia, and Sierra Leone (1930s–1990s)

12:00 – 12:15 - Coffee Break

12:15 – 13:15 - Panel 2: Identity Formation in the Diaspora
Álvarez Cabello, Pablo (Universidad Diego Portales, Santiago, Chile, online): Arab Muslims in Chile. Everyday life of a religious community
Atri Mizrahi, Clairette (Graduate Center (CUNY) in New York City, online): What if We Reopen This Place: A Tune, Attitude, and Rhythm on the Verge of Semantic Availability. Or, Arab-Jews in Mexico

13:15 – 14:15 - Panel 3: Heritage and Identity
Jiménez, Scarlette (New Yourk University Abu Dhabi, in person): Preservation of Arab heritage among diaspora communities in Peru and Brazil
Wintzell, Gus (University of Alabama in Huntsville, USA, in person): Interaction between first, second, and third generation Arab immigrants in Buenos Aires and Rosario, Argentina

14:15 – 15:15 – Lunch Break

15:15 – 16:45 – Panel 4: Palestinian Identity and Activism in the Diaspora
El Kurd, Dana (University of Richmond, USA, online): Activism in the Palestinian Chilean Community
Fallas, Amy (UC Santa Barbara, USA / Orient-Institute Beirut, Lebanon, in person): "Hermanos fi al-Muqawama (Brothers in the Resistance): Schafik Handal and Forging Solidarity from El Salvador to the Middle East."
Hodali, Suleiman Ramzi (UC Los Angeles, online): The historical formation of Palestinian national consciousness through the lens of the diasporic communities of Chile (1930s-present)

16:45 – 17:15 – Small Break

17:15 – 19:15 – Film Screening (Optional)

FRIDAY, 01.11.2024

11:00 – 12:00 - Keynote Lecture
Lily Balloffet (University of California, Santa Cruz, in person): Middle East Mobilities in the Caribbean Basin: Margins and ‘Fronteras’ of the Mahjar

12:00 – 12:45 – Research Resources (tbc)
Roberto Khatlab (Beirut, Lebanon online): Presentation of the Latin American Collection at USEK Library, Beirut, Lebanon

12:45 – 13:15 - Coffee Break

13:15 - 14:15 Panel 5: Art and Culture Across Continents
Wolf, Olivia (Loyola University Chicago, online -7h): The Art and Architecture of the Syrian and Lebanese diaspora in Modern Argentina
Bennett, Kirsty (Lancaster University, UK, in person): Arabic/Latin American music behind the ‘Iron Curtain’ in the late 50s/early 60s culture

14:15 - 15:30 - Lunch Break

15:30 – 16:30 - Panel 6: International Politics I
Camacho Padilla, Fernando (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain, online): Relations between Mexico and Iran in the 1970s
Jacob-Lakrimdi, Meret (Free University Berlin, Germany, in person): The Mad Dog’s chase for his Strays: How transnational repression shaped the Libyan diaspora under Muammar al-Qadhafi (1969-2011)

16: 30 – 17: 30 – Panel 7: International Politics II
Lob, Eric (Florida International University, USA -6h): The Role of Syrian Venezuelans in Strengthening Relations between Venezuela and its Middle East Allies
Zwick, Maja (Free University Berlin, Germany): Cuba’s South-South solidarity and the emergence of new diasporas. The case of the Saharawi refugee camps in Algeria

19:30 Workshop Dinner (optional, self-funded)
At Moritz-Bastei Leipzig https://www.moritzbastei.de/

SATURDAY, 02.11.2024

11:00 – 12:00 Panel 8: Intellectual Networks I
Köster, Katrin (Leipzig University, Germany, in person): ʿAlawī Intellectuals between the Syrian homeland and the Latin American diaspora. A case study on the journalist, author and politician ʿAbdallaṭīf al-Yūnis (1914-2013)
Stephano de Queiroz, Christina (Federal University of São Paulo, Brasil, online): Mussa Kuraiem, Jamil Almansur Haddad and Assis Feres: messengers between worlds

12:00 – 13:00 Panel 9: Intellectual Networks II
Cruz Romero, Roberto (German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies, Berlin, in person): "Knowledge production and shared epistemic networks"
De Moya-Guerra, Laura C. (Rutgers University, USA, online): Arab Immigrants in Colombia and their Homeland: Local Sources for Transnational Stories

13:00 – 14:00 – Lunch and Final Discussion

Contact (announcement)

Katrin.koester@uni-leipzig.de

Editors Information
Published on
24.10.2024
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