The School of Law and Political Sciences, in collaboration with the Latin American Studies and Cultures Center and the International Affairs Office, hosted a lecture by Spanish author Alberto López Oliva on the Arab diaspora in Chile, titled: “The Emergence of National identities: Half a Century of Arab Journalism in Chile.” The talk will be introduced* by Carlos Moran, ambassador of Chile to Lebanon.

The event took place on Monday, March 18, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at the Étienne Sacre Auditorium (Building B – 1st Floor).


Abstract:
During the first half of the 20th century, more than thirty newspapers were circulated among Chile’s Arab immigrant community. These publications will help us understand the main ideological currents supported by this group of emigrants as they integrated into their host society, and the emergence of new national identities in their homeland: Syrian, Lebanese, and Palestinian. This gives us the opportunity to contextualize the current process of identity reaffirmation in the Arab Chilean society and the activist movement led by the Palestinian community in the country, known as the most significant outside the Arab world. To this end, this lecture will examine the most significant chapters in the history of this immigration, such as the departure of these individuals from the Levantine Mediterranean coast and their early conflict with the Chilean population.