La Noche del Decreto en la Argentina
Oct 10th, 2007, 01:58 am
The entrance to the Asociación Islámica Alauita de Beneficencia.
In my quest to explore the diversity of the Muslim community in Buenos Aires, I spent Saturday night at the Asociación Islámica Alauita de Beneficencia (Islamic Alawite Charity Association), located in José Ingenieros, a neighborhood located just northwest of the Capital Federal (pronounced cah-pee-tal fay-day-ral), the actual city of BA.
There were prayers, lots of food, a panel discussion about how imperialism and capitalism have screwed up Lebanon and Syria, and a short film about Laylat al-Qadr made by a group of youngsters in their late teens to mid-twenties. Good stuff.
Because most of the attendees were Shias (specifically, Alawites), I was exposed to a side of the Muslim community with which I’ve had little contact. Although I don’t have any sort of strong sectarian identity, I grew up in a traditionally Sunni family, pray Sunni-style, and mostly have a Sunni circle of friends. Therefore, you could say I’m Sunni, even though I wish I could say I just practice Islam and not a specific form of it. I’m not a Wahabi hatemonger, so I enjoy getting out there and learning about other religions and the diverse interpretations of Islam.
The sheikh discussing the importance of Laylat al-Qadr.
What struck me most is just how Argentine the 200 or so people looked. I mean, I realized that I could theoretically walk by dozens of Muslims a day and never realize we’re brothers and sisters in Islam. Since most people were dressed in their “normal” clothes, looked just as white as most Argentines, and spoke very porteño Spanish, they could have easily blended in with the mainstream, European-descended Catholic population. Most of their families have been in Argentina for several generations. Thus, they’ve effectively lost most of their Lebanese and Syrian identity and are 100% Argentine. Because most American Muslims are various shades of brown and black while the “mainstream” looks a bit fairer, I still have the mindset that Muslims look different, even though I’m well aware they can be of any ethnicity or nationality.
A man giving the adhan before fajr.
Seeing all those Muslims made me wonder how my own kids and grandchildren will turn out. Farther removed from the immigrant experience, they’ll grow up with far less Bangladeshi influence that it’ll be as if they don’t have any foreign blood in them. Perhaps American society will even accept them as all-American and not anything else!
All in all, I had a great time. What better way to experience Argentina while keeping things Islamic?