2 minute read
Arab Night in Houston
By Matthew Curran
In the Greater Houston area, research from the Arab American Cultural and Community Center has calculated only 200,000 Arab Americans present in the region due to Census Bureau not providing an option to identify as MENA or Middle Eastern and North African making the current data dubious and potentially inaccurate. Despite this, there is large amounts of activity among the Houstonian Arab community because of their tightly knit associations, whether they be Palestinian, Lebanese, Jordanian, and so on.
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There is a particular event happening in East Downtown, where Arab culture is celebrated, and the community comes together to vibe. It’s called Arab Night created by an artist who is very invested in celebrating and exchanging culture by the name of Carlos Castaneira. Carlos’ Arab Night, like other events he organized, is devoted to keeping an authenticity of not just culture but also the community from which the culture is from. Usually an average of two dozen, many people whether they be Arabs or non-Arabs come together to enjoy the food, talk in the language, and partake in music and dance native to the Arab people.
Afrovibes TV has interviewed Carlos and many of his guests about the direction Arab Night is going towards. The event is something that many of the guests look forward to every time it gets announced. Carlos mentions he didn’t want the event to be a watered-down, Americanized experience that would amount to more of a theme park of Arabic culture. By having many from the MENA community be a part of it, it ensures that there’s a space that many in the Arab community can look forward to for the days to come. Arab Night is monthly or bi-monthly now with a capacity limit of invited people up to thirty per night. There is much good food to be enjoyed like the dates and the tea provided. Many will listen and participate to the rhythm of the drums and oud play. In Arab Night, one can understand the Arab community as it was supposed to be understood, all here in the diverse city of Houston.
