Thousands of Palestinian Americans from Ramallah traveled from across the country to Dearborn last week, where they invaded the Hyatt Regency Hotel for the 50th annual convention of the American Federation of Ramallah, Palestine.

About 4,000 people gathered who, according to tradition, are all descended from the same seven men who founded the West Bank city of Ramallah hundreds of years ago.

“It was like a big family reunion,” said George Khoury, member of the Detroit chapter Ramallah Club.

A slew of cultural and political events spread through the rooms and halls of the hotel for five days, July 2-6, the lobby constantly swarming with people.

Each year the convention is held in a different city, but the first was in Detroit, making it a fitting location for the 50th.

Khoury said it all started with six Wayne State University students who put together a publication called Hathihe Ramallah in 1952.

“They created a magazine to connect them and the magazine called for the convention in 1959, and at the convention they created the American Federation of Ramallah,” said Khoury.

The federation’s stated goals were to unite the immigrants and refugees of the close-knit village, for them to be “strong enough to serve their Federation, their hometown Ramallah, and their native and adopted countries of Palestine and the United States.”

While there were political discussions and workshops — like a panel on Internet activism to pool ideas on using new media to fight for Palestinian rights — Khoury said the gathering is primarily cultural and social.

One main feature was a cultural room set aside to resemble an Arab café, filled with men playing endless card games, small bands performing traditional music, and vendors selling pastries and crafts made in Ramallah.

The convention is also known as a way for young people to meet potential spouses.

Each day of activities culminated with one, or several lively parties and Arab-style haflehs.

Highlights of the convention, according to Khoury and others who attended, were an address given by Archbishop Theodosios Atallah Hanna on the plight of Palestinian refugees and the dwindling Christian Palestinian population, a comprehensive lecture on the history of Ramallah given by Ramallah doctor Shawki Harb and appearances by Ramallah mayor Janet Michael and popular Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich.

The documentary film by Detroit-area native Jackie Salloum “Slingshot Hip Hop” — which was featured at the Sundance Film Festival in January — about the rise and struggle of politically outspoken rap artists in Palestine, was shown at the convention.

Salloum herself greeted an overflowing crowd afterward, along with one of the artists featured in the film who flew in from Palestine and sang the traditional song “Wein’a Ramallah,” to the giddy audience.

Khoury, who is actually not from Ramallah, but from the neighboring village of Birzeit, became close to the group and joined it 35 years ago.

He attended the first two days of the convention and then traveled with Archbishop Hanna to Houston, Texas, where the annual Birzeit convention was also being held.

He said the Birzeit gathering, while smaller, with about 500 people attending, was even more chock full of activities, complete with political comedians, activists and discussions on domestic and foreign politics.

“It was more lively,” he said.

The host hotel, the Houston Intercontinental, refused to raise the Palestinian flag on its pole, however, even though, Khoury said, it does so with the French and other flags when other international events take place there.

He said the Birzeit Society has taken the issue up with the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee and other groups, frustrated with the refusal.

But, used to fighting those fights, the group didn’t let the incident keep them down.

“It was one of the best times you can have of this nature,” Khoury said.

The Internet activism panel at the Ramallah convention highlighted the following websites for use in online action for Palestinian rights: www.fiveforpalestine.org, www.qumsiyeh.org, www.mmwatch.org, www.btselem.org, www.sabeel.org.