A three-week “Back to Roots” Summer Academy Program that concluded this weekend gave 21 college students from the diaspora the chance to gain an intensive experience of the history, heritage and politics of Lebanon.
Gustave Cordahi, the president of the Lebanese Forces Student Association of North America and a recent immigrant to the US, told The Daily Star his own experience has taught him that generations of Lebanese born and raised in the US and Canada are often unable to keep the flame of attachment to their motherland alive.
“We notice that the wealthiest men in the world today are of Lebanese descent, but many of them are not willing to invest in Lebanon. This is due to a lack of effort within Lebanon to show the importance of the motherland that made their ancestors who they were, and to highlight the uniqueness of Lebanon,” Cordahi said.
Cordahi noted that familial and personal experiences of Lebanon don’t always provide a full picture, while local media outlets are not always comprehensive. Therefore, in order to understand the country, one must experience it firsthand and maintain this level of contact.
“Family links to Lebanon are very fragile, so one can view the program as creating a strong and durable link which remains as long as Lebanon remains,” he said.
The program, held for the first time this year, was organized in North America by the Lebanese Forces Student Association there, and in Lebanon through the Lebanese Forces Political University, a new institute founded by the party.
Despite this link with the Lebanese Forces (LF), Cordahi stressed that the summer program involved political diversity.
“We are always open to contributions from any associations who appreciate the importance of the emigrant community and can contribute to the rejuvenation of Lebanon in all respects. The students’ political affiliations in fact range across the whole spectrum,” Cordahi said.
While the students had a meeting with President Michel Sleiman at Baabda Palace, their other visits to local politicians indicated a March 14 slant, since they met figures such as Prime Minister Saad Hariri and former MPs Mustafa Alloush and Fares Soueid.
According to Dr. Joseph Gebeily, who heads the LF branch in North America, the concept of the program was created within the Lebanese Information Center based in the US to strengthen the connection between Lebanese-Americans and their home country, especially among young people.
“We reached out to youth organizations such as Cordahi’s to see if there was interest in traveling to Lebanon to learn more about Lebanese heritage, geography and history. The plan was formulated especially to form these student groups,” Gebeily said.
The 21 students participating in the program – headquartered at the Saydet al-Jabal convent in Adma – took part in lectures that covered Lebanon’s history, politics, geography and culture, while also emphasizing the sharing of ideas and mutual learning.
“It’s not like a closed school system, its learning and enjoying at the same time,” said Cordahi.
“Students are taught about all aspects of Lebanon including the entire political spectrum; they are shown the whole picture … we give them all the options to formulate their own opinions, which is one of the main aims of the program,” he said.
A considerable part of the “Back to Roots” program was based on trips outside the classroom – to tourist, cultural and academic sites in Lebanon.
The program consisted of visits to the campuses of major Lebanese universities, including the American University of Beirut and the Notre Dame University in Zouk Mosbeh..
Dr. Antoine Habchi, one of the teachers of the course on history and politics, remarked that many students were surprised by the quality of Lebanese universities.
“Students were so impressed by the technological and academic opportunities offered by the universities we took them to,” he said. “In fact, many of them are now considering Lebanon as the destination for their semester abroad.”
Both Cordahi and Gebeily stressed the program has formed a building block in the political evolution of the Lebanese community in North America and played a major part in the recent efforts to connect with the motherland.
“In North America there have been different waves of Lebanese immigration, from the early 1900s all the way until student-based immigration today,” Cordahi said.
“This new blood forms, to a certain extent, a connection between old generations and the reality of Lebanon today. If you compare this to Latin America for example, it’s a different story. Most of the emigration to Latin America happened centuries ago and so it’s more difficult to make these Lebanese descendents connect to Lebanon. Even the Lebanese government has realized the importance of the Lebanese emigrant community, so we are definitely making an important contribution in formulating this link,” Cordahi said.
Similarly, Gebeily remarked on the need to engage with the Lebanese community in North America so that its members can provide reciprocal benefits to their motherland.
“There are over two million people of Lebanese origin living in the US. This very large community should understand what Lebanon is about if at some point they will be willing to help Lebanon,” he said.
“Despite the large presence of Lebanese in the US, there hasn’t been much activism within the Lebanese community when compared with other immigrant communities. Lately there has been an increased interest in Lebanon due to the globalization of information and the US government’s enhanced involvement in the Middle East,” he said.
“In parallel, there has been a growth among Lebanese-American groups, for instance the Lebanese Information Center,” said Gebeily.”
“Even though this activism is long overdue, it’s never too late to start somewhere. It’s especially important to reach out to the youth who are more energized and committed to big issues and who are the future of the Lebanese American presence,” said Gebeily.
The program emphasized the need to show the full picture of Lebanon in terms of politics and religion, with students visiting leaders across all political and religious divides.
“All the way back from the recruitment process that began in North American university campuses, we stressed the need to appeal to all Americans and Canadians of Lebanese descent,” Cordahi said.
Tania Anaissi, a 19-year old Lebanese American, said she was motivated by the chance to “broaden my knowledge of Lebanese history and politics.”
On the other hand, Salim Zerriny, a 20-year old originally from Achrafieh, had a different reason for taking part.
“I haven’t been back to Lebanon in 11 years and the fact that the program is run by a very well-respected organization particularly encouraged me to jump on board,” he said.
Jane Azzi, a 23-year old student whose family left Lebanon during the civil war, emphasized how her strong roots were a major factor in her wish to learn more about her homeland.
“This program allowed me to meet so many influential people who have helped me to make clear decisions in my head regarding Lebanon as a whole,” she said.
For Noelle Bou Abboud, 19, who is half Lebanese, the program “really helped me discover who I am and what Lebanon is, and the approach that was used throughout was quite holistic.”
The program ranged from encounters with prominent political and media figures to trips to nature reserves, with a hiking trip to Wadi Qannoubine as a highlight for some of the young participants.
Looking back over the program as a whole, Cordahi said he was pleased with the results.
“There are a few students on the course who have never been to Lebanon before so it was very heartwarming to know that they took this opportunity to discover the Lebanon that they had heard so much about but never experienced,” he said, adding that the program’s next edition could expand to the Lebanese community in Australia.