Alfawares Dabka Troupe from Detroit headlined the community fair at the Indianapolis Global Village held on April 12, 2025, from 12 Noon to 4pm. Hundreds of community members attended, enjoying the poetry of Sajjad Jawad, the food of Al Rayyan Restaurant, the music of the Salaam Band from Bloomington, and an original art exhibit.

The fair was a collaboration among a couple dozen Arab American community members, the IU Indianapolis Arabic Studies Program, and the Indiana chapter of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee with additional financial support from the Community Engaged Alliance, Inc.

Students serve Al Rayyan’s catering at the fair

Students from IU Indianapolis’ Introduction to Arab American Studies class worked with artist Salma Taman, community organizer Yaqoub Saadeh, attorney Salma Qaddourah, and health care analyst Maria Nimri, among others, to organize the fair.

The fair opened with over a dozen community resource tables from partners such as ACLU Indiana, St. George Church, Indiana Muslim Advocacy Network, and IU Indianapolis University Library as well as a henna table and kids’ activities.

Students then served up lunch from Al Rayyan, which was followed by entertainment from Salaam Band and Alfawares Dabka. The moment when audience members joined in the line dance was a highlight, to be sure. Before he stood up to recite some poetry in Arabic, community member Sajjad Jawad became the impromptu lawih, or leader, of a dance with the professionals.

As they were organizing the fair, students in Intro to Arab American studies learned about the tradition of such parties and festivals (haflas and mahrajans), which were a regular part of Arab American life in the 1950s and 1960s. Their efforts brought this tradition back to life in Indianapolis for April’s Arab American Heritage Month.