Coming Home is a short film about the Freedom Dabka Group, a group of Palestinian-Americans in Brooklyn who use the traditional dance of dabka to connect with their heritage and keep it alive.
The guys in this film grew up on the basketball courts of Brooklyn, but their parents still remember the Palestine they were forced to flee. They live in hope of returning, but how do they pass that on to their children who have spent their whole lives in America? The answer for these guys is dabka.
Dabka for them is not simply a dance move, it is connection and community. It connects them to a tradition that reaches back through generations of their people, and bonds them together in a joyous celebration. They do it anywhere, dancing on the streets, in stores, wherever they can practice a little footwork.
While in exile, Palestine is kept alive by its people, in its people, and in dance is expressed, and shared collectively. It is made real for generations born separated from it. Great little film.