Letters from Afar: New Khayrallah Center collection of letters from West Africa to Lebanon
Introduction In 1936 Nadim Attallah, a Lebanese immigrant living in Conakry, Guinea (West Africa), wrote an exasperated and desperate letter to his father, Maronite Rev. Tobia Attallah of Bayt Shabab village . He chided him: “I am astounded that after […]
Announcing the Angele Hobeiche Kmeid-Ellis Collection
The Khayrallah Center is excited to announce a three part project centered on an extraordinary collection of over three-hundred letters received by Angele Ellis from friends and family in Lebanon, Cuba, Canada, Chile, and France. They are written in Arabic, […]
The Second Jabbour Immigrant: Albert Jabbour and His Courtship Story
This blog was written by Folklorist, Sabra Webber. Webber is a professor emerita at The Ohio State University in the Department of Comparative Studies and the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures. She visited the Khayrallah Center in the […]
Announcing “The Romey Lynchings” Website
On May 17th, 1929, two Lebanese immigrants in Lake City, Florida were murdered in a tragic tale of racial violence against Arab immigrants. Hasna Romey was killed by police while defending her husband and business, and her husband, N’oula, was […]
Teaching Public History: Interactive Program Paves The Way For Lebanese Teachers
A program hosted by the Khayrallah Center is transforming the way Lebanese teachers educate students about their country’s history.
Passing a Camel Through Ellis Island: Arab-American Press and the Immigration Act of 1924
This post was written by Diogo Bercito, a Brazilian journalist who worked as a foreign correspondent in Jerusalem, Beirut, and Cairo. He is currently pursuing an M.A. in Arab Studies at Georgetown University, where he researches Arab migration to Latin America. He […]
A Waking Dream: Syrian Migrants’ Journey to the Americas
This post was written by Randa Tawil, a PhD candidate in American Studies at Yale University. Tawil’s dissertation focuses on early 20th century migration routes from Syria to North and South America, and explores how constructs of gender and race […]
“A Boatload of Horses”: Alan Jabbour’s Family Immigration Saga
This blog was written by Folklorist, Sabra Webber. Webber is a professor emerita at The Ohio State University in the Department of Comparative Studies and the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures. She visited the Khayrallah Center in the […]
Fighting Injustice: The Story of Herbert Nassour
Far too often, the complex history of Lebanese immigration is collapsed into a few “success” stories, measured by accumulation of fame and fortune. Such tales are certainly real and admirable, but fall short of telling the whole story of immigration. […]
“Like a wolf who fell upon sheep”: Early Lebanese Immigrants and Religion in America
For some early Lebanese immigrants, religion was a source of comfort. Its rituals, language and congregations provided a sense of home in an alien environment, and stability amid the fast-paced changes they experienced in their new lives. For others, it […]