{"id":277267,"date":"2020-07-22T20:52:26","date_gmt":"2020-07-22T23:52:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/?p=277267"},"modified":"2020-07-24T14:23:28","modified_gmt":"2020-07-24T17:23:28","slug":"pride-in-arab-roots-ties-together-generations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/pride-in-arab-roots-ties-together-generations\/","title":{"rendered":"Pride in Arab roots ties together generations"},"content":{"rendered":"

S\u00e3o Paulo \u2013 The Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce<\/strong> (ABCC) hosted an online event this Wednesday (22) to mark its 68 years in existence. Arabs and Arab descendants who live in Brazilian land were invited to give testimonials. They are from different walks of life and age ranges, with varying degrees of proximity to their Arab roots. Still, most of them claimed to be proud of their shared Arab background and of Arabs\u2019 achievements in Brazil. Pictured<\/em> above is journalist Sonia Racy, who was featured in testimonial footage.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Roberto Duailibi is an 84-year-old advertising professional and the son to a Lebanese father<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Advertising practitioner Roberto Duailibi was also featured. His S\u00e3o Paulo-born mother met his father in Lebanon, where he was born, and then they moved to S\u00e3o Paulo together. \u201cThey raised their seven children with a lot of love for Lebanon, as well as for their kin and all other descendants. I take great pride in my roots and I identify with the work that the ABCC is doing to build ties between Brazil and that part of the world,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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Hedel Fayad\u2019s parents settled in Brazil in 1930<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hedel Fayad, a retired brigade general, is also of Lebanese descent. His parents settled in Brazil in 1930. \u201cOur grandparents, parents and uncles devoted themselves to commercial activity so that us children and grandchildren could pursue an education. Just as we tout our pride on our Lebanese blood, we are also aware of our responsibility of representing and honoring our ancestors,\u201d said Fayad.<\/p>\n

Journalist Sonia Racy of newspaper O Estado de S\u00e3o Paulo<\/em> recalled a lesson she learned from a Lebanese elder. \u201cHere\u2019s what he told me: \u2018My dear, if you don\u2019t know where you\u2019re from, you won\u2019t know where you\u2019re headed.\u201d My four grandparents came from Lebanon. I am deeply interested in anything that relates to my origin,\u201d she said in a filmed testimonial.<\/p>\n

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ICArabe president Mohamed Habib is an immigrant and counts himself happy for all his achievements in Brazil<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Institute of Arab Culture (ICArabe) president Mohamed Habib gave his take on what it\u2019s like being an Arab immigrant in Brazil. \u201cIt\u2019s a complex process, what with so many radical changes involved. It\u2019s not easy to adapt to a different language, different habits. It\u2019s not easy to communicate or to adapt to a new country, and moreover you miss the country that you came from. I can only speak for myself, and I was very lucky. In my process of adapting to Brazil, of integrating and paying my dues, I believe I was very lucky, and I thank God for all that I was graced with here in Brazil. I count myself a happy immigrant,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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TV presenter and journalist Renata Maron proudly touts her family name with pride<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Renata Maron, a TV presenter for Grupo Bandeirantes who\u2019s an Arab descendant on the paternal side, lauded the community\u2019s achievements in Brazil. \u201cI find it really interesting to see how Arabs have contributed to multiple aspects of Brazilian society, whether it be cuisine, art, culture, medicine or technology,\u201d she said. Maron went to Saudi Arabia last year and felt closer to her roots. \u201cI carry the surname Maron with a lot of pride. I\u2019m proud of being Arab,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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William Adib Dib Junior\u2019s paternal grandparent hailed from Homs, Syria<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lar S\u00edrio president and ABCC board member William Adib Dib Junior\u2019s paternal grandfather was born in Homs, Syria. \u201cI take great satisfaction and pride in being a descendant of Syrians. This is a very humble, hard-working community who adopted Brazil as their homeland. The Arab community in Brazil has always been very well represented, whether it be in the social and sporting realm, with clubs like Club Homs, Esporte Clube S\u00edrio and Clube Atl\u00e9tico Monte L\u00edbano, or the cultural organizations and charities that have proven to be great assets of Brazilian society,\u201d he argued.<\/p>\n

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Alvaro Sarkis father and mother moved to Brazil in the 1910s<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Adib Dib Junior also mentioned institutions like the ABCC, the Syrian Home for Children, Heart Hospital, the Syrian-Lebanese Hospital, and elderly support charity Associa\u00e7\u00e3o Beneficente M\u00e3o Branca de Amparo aos Idosos. \u201cMany of them have existed for a century, they assist the entire population, and they are go-to institutions in their lines of work,\u201d he emphasized.<\/p>\n

Physician and University of S\u00e3o Paulo (USP) professor Alvaro Sarkis seconded the relevance of the organizations and hospitals brought up by Adib Dib Junior. \u201cMy paternal and maternal families immigrated to Brazil in the 1910s,\u201d he said, pointing out that many of the charities were established during that time.<\/p>\n

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Journalist Marina Sarruf Machado\u2019s grandfather made the move to Brazil. The shop he established is still in business<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Journalist Marina Sarruf Machado is a granddaughter to a Syrian immigrant. She was a Brazil-Arab News Agency (ANBA) reporter early on. The agency\u2019s stated mission is to help connect Brazilians and Arabs through its news. \u201cI am really proud of having been in ANBA, which gets about 80,000 views a month at this point and is getting better and better known in Brazil and the Arab countries,\u201d she says. Machado had a seven-year stint with ANBA. She\u2019s currently in the ABCC\u2019s Communication Department.<\/p>\n

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Osmar Chohfi has Syrian-born paternal and maternal grandparents<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ambassador and ABCC International Relations vice-president Osmar Chohfi, who has Syrian-born paternal and maternal grandparents, said this was an occasion in which to celebrate. \u201cFirst of all, to celebrate those that decided to set off to a new world with determination. They brought along their entrepreneurial capabilities and above all the courage to take on the challenges ahead of them. This is the story of thousands of families across the Arab world who looked to Brazil, a land of opportunity, to convert their aspirations and yearnings into personal and professional achievement. This is the story of my father\u2019s and mother\u2019s families,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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A native of Lebanon, physician Riad Younes arrived in Brazil in 1976<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hospital Oswaldo Cruz Oncology Center director and ABCC Marketing vice-president Riad Younes considers himself \u201ca proud member of this great Arab-Brazilian community, first and foremost.\u201d The Lebanon-born physician fled to Brazil during the civil war in 1976. \u201cDuring my first hours in S\u00e3o Paulo, I felt welcomed and doubly embraced by the Arabs and the Brazilians. I felt welcome, I pursued my studies and I labored. Not once did I feel targeted by discrimination or intolerance. As I came up through the ranks in my career, I was constantly thinking of how to give back,\u201d said Younes, who has engaged in community service and keeps contributing to the work of the ABCC.<\/p>\n

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Former Brazil president Michel Temer proudly touts his Lebanese roots<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Former president of Brazil Michel Temer discussed his Lebanese roots. \u201cI would like to state my pride in being a son to Lebanese parents,\u201d he said. His political career is proof of how welcoming Brazil is of foreigners, Temer argued, \u201cI was able to pursue a career in politics, and I served as House speaker on several occasions. Likewise, I have been vice-president and president, and that attests to how well Arabs have integrated in Brazil. And so for this celebration I would once again like to express my pride in my background, and particularly my pride in having been born here. Lebanon and Brazil walk hand in hand and will continue to do so, the Arab community and Brazil,\u201d he said in a testimonial video.<\/p>\n

The webinar also featured the presentation of a survey that has shown that Brazil is home to 11.6 million Arabs and Arab descendants. The information was presented by Ibope Intelig\u00eancia CEO M\u00e1rcia Cavallari Nunes and by H2R Pesquisas Avan\u00e7adas director Alessandra Frisso. Featured speakers included ABCC president Rubens Hannun, Policy Council chairman Walid Yazigi, and secretary-general Tamer Mansour, plus the dean of the Council of Arab Ambassadors in Brazil and ambassador of Palestine, Ibrahim Alzeben. Arab League secretary-general Ahmed Aboul Gheit was featured in a filmed testimonial.<\/p>\n

For more on the survey and the virtual event please check out:<\/em><\/p>\n

Arabs, descendants are 6% of Brazil\u2019s population: survey<\/a><\/p>\n

Ten pct of Brazil\u2019s business leaders are Arab or descendants<\/a><\/p>\n

Arab descendants: 41% are third-generation immigrants<\/a><\/p>\n

Arab Brazilian Chamber announces creation of Arab House<\/a><\/p>\n

You can watch the full webinar here:<\/em><\/p>\n