Loved in Egypt, but Thrown Away in America

Columbia Fawaala Ibrahim   It needs to be said and said loudly: Folkloric dancers are not respected in America. The only people who respect them are people directly from the Middle East or researchers who understand the significance. The crux of American onlookers' disregards the artists as good dancers if they do not submit to Western standards. Most compare us to our Egyptian Cabaret counterparts. While Egyptian Cabaret is entertaining, it sadly submits to Orientalism and the oversexualization of art. It is profitable but shuts out those who want to present a Folkloric take on the dance. The folkloric is the original and will always be much older than modern dancers who submit to mythological customs.

This has a major history in the US and Egypt alike. It saddens many who see women opt for extreme plastic surgery to make hungry eyes happy. Folkloric dancers embrace their age and their bodies. The issue is that Egyptian Cabaret dancers are taking jobs from folkloric dancers not only abroad but also in Egypt. They have flashy costumes, but many foreigners lack the culture needed to perform for Arabs. Now they also twerk and wear little to nothing while dancing. While sex has always been sold to foreigners, some Egyptian contractors are forcing this upon women in the dance as “the dance standard.” Where does this come from? There’s a ton of history I will introduce and share in this article.

We need to remind ourselves of the history of Orientalism. Orientalism is the bastardization of SWANA (Southwest Asia and North Africa) and MENAHT (Middle Eastern, North African, Hellenic, and Turkish) cultures. It is often oversexualized and gives misconceptions of the Arab and Mediterranean world (4). Sex does sell tickets and paintings, but neither was accurate. Women didn’t lie half-nude waiting for men to please her or to please men. Even sex workers were covered up due to Islamic laws set in place by the Sultan or Sultana. Author Edward Said (1935-2003) wrote a book entitled, Orientalism” detailing its effects on the regions.

In Said’s book, he goes through a ton of history on the topic of Orientalism. He says it has three definitions: products that are radically quarrelsome, the common misinformation about the “Orient”, and a Western dominance and description of it that ends in disaster (1 Said P.7, P.20). This is what not only has the history taught by teachers been tainted with over the decades, but it was not their fault. Jamila Salimpour (1926-2017), for example, had no other means when she started Bal Anat in 1968. She only knew what was recorded by Orientalists from the past. She never went over to the Arab world but sent her students over there to bring back accurate research. Jamila did know at least one Algerian dancer who assisted in the tattooing aspect. Many teachers, such as Jamila, would teach stereotypical ways and lore of the dance. These myths included that only women danced and also that they performed in front of Sultans. These images came from Orientalists' sexual fantasies that they tried to record as history.

The creation of Orientalism created a space for whorephobia to exist. Whorephobia is a negative stereotype, stigma, and marginalization that many sex workers face (2). Many people, ever since colonialism, equate Orientale Danse with sex work. This is why many people have retreated into folkloric styles of dancing to fight this issue. The whorephobia was created when Mohammad Ali Pasha who placed a ban on Egyptian women from dancing publicly in 1834. This stigma has haunted the dance ever since. Many marginalized dancers had to resort to illegal sex work or invade the spaces of working Awalim (courtesans who sang and wrote poetry) due to laws that would get them killed. We are seeing this behavior happen still, but in a new form. Promoters in Cairo reach out to foreigners to ask them to contract with their entertainment companies. Many of these men have contacted me in the past and even tried to convince me to transition into a woman so they can make money off me. They have sent me what they think I should wear, and I have refused. I wear folkloric outfits because I find them more respectful and accurate to what I want to display. But as dancer Somaya said in the piece by Ali Bawaba, promoters want the girls to look sexy in their costumes (3). It is not only the costume industry that assists in promoting this idea, but also dancers themselves.

I must take accountability for having done this myself in the past with performances. I think a lot of us have realized that we are not doing any good by dancing in this manner. What we are doing is creating an image that is solely inappropriate for others to consume. Even dancing like Marwa, an Egyptian/Lebanese artist, can be perceived as too risqué. I see both sides of the coin. A dancer should be able to embrace their sexuality without being associated with sex work. It is, however, our responsibility as dancers to perform things that reflect the values of the cultures affected. We hold a huge responsibility for modern folk dancers not being able to secure employment. We have influenced the Arab world to oversexualize their dancers, forcing some to feel the need for plastic surgery to get the perfect look and maintain an unrealistic image of the “perfect body.” When it is just a dancer who looks sexy, it is no longer about the dance. It morphs into the fetish of the patrons. Even Egyptian dancer Somaya admits that clients have suggested things to her about her body (3).

Hypersexualism is also an issue that many people face. As Somaya suggested, it is expected to be a "sexy dancer" if you are going to make it (3). Why does dance have to be done haram (forbidden or dirty) and not halal (clean)? This is what dancers such as Shafiqa the Coptic had to deal with in her life. Even HIPS DONT’ LIE Dance Company acknowledges the issues with hypersexualization of the dance. Many dancers in the Middle East and West fall victim to this stereotype (4). This is why the “sexy” look appalls a lot of the cultures we are supposed to hold in reverence. Our actions have spoken louder than our Facebook or Instagram posts. We tend to say what is popular, but do we reflect it in our values when we dance is the question to consider. If we are to call out racism, sexism, and all other evils, then we can’t partake in it ourselves. We, as individuals who are apart from the culture, cannot pick and choose what we police.

Could we be culturally appropriating it without knowing it? We must do it with cultural knowledge and sensitivity (5). Before it was popular, I used to call it out a lot. I got a lot of flak for doing so. They would say I was trying to police the way they danced too harshly. I still stand by my criticisms of dancers who present this dance incorrectly. There’s free information out there to assist. You just must take time to study it and find your voice in the dance. To me, when I see a dancer in a gallabiyah with her bra showing, I feel that this would be considered misappropriation. Misappropriation is the adaptation of it by Westerners who wear costumes and perform the dance stereotypically (5). This can be looked at as a form of cultural appropriation instead of appreciating the culture that inspired it (6). This seems to still be done by some dancers, and they will defend doing this until the day they retire from their sagats.

What shall we do then? Do any of us have a dog in this fight? My answers to both of those are that we can do things without blacklisting and trying to harm others' employment opportunities. We need to show what we say and clean up our own backyards before judging others. A parable of this would be the nosy neighbor who reports another to their HOA but still has weeds in their own yard. While they felt it was okay to report to others for the violation, they still had weeds in their yard that they felt too high and mighty to deal with. People who exemplify this behavior make it distasteful for others to consume. This art is not only about cultural means, but also about keeping your image up to the standards that you hold others to.

This goes beyond how we treat each other. We need to evaluate who really appreciates us. Mostly for myself, many of the rural Egyptians and Arabs who respect the art appreciate my work. They have complemented and even assisted me in my research if they can. Bringing artists like Nagham Hassany to the forefront was the work of rural artists. If I have learned anything in my 19 years in this industry is that we all need to provide respect and want to be shown to others. At the end of the day, dancers who honor the folkways of this art form are the ones you will need help from when people get tired of the sexualization we have implemented on this beautiful art form. All dancers, whether Arab, White, Black, or other cultures, have a responsibility when it comes to the treatment and acumen of this dance. At the end of the day, many cultures own these art forms. We Americans do not get to decide who feels what. We have helped shape these views, and suffering will not end until we ourselves improve. Keep this in mind: when you take water from the lotus, you must put some back. If you don’t, the lotus will die, and so will your efforts to restore what was once lost.

References:

1.Said, E. (2003). Orientalism (3rd ed.). The Penguin Group. https://www.eaford.org/site/assets/files/1631/said_edward1977_orientalism.pdf 

2. (n.d.). End Whorephobia. https://www.endwhorephobia.org/ 

3. Bawaba, A. (2026). Has it gone belly-up? The capital of hip-shaking feels pinch of Muslim politics but dancers keep the faith. Daily Egypt News. https://www.albawaba.com/entertainment/egypt-belly-dancing-brotherhood-483042 

4. (n.d.). Stigmatization and hypersexualization of oriental dancers. HIPS DON'T LIE Dance Company. https://hipsdontlie.ca/stigmatization-and-hypersexualization-of-oriental-dancers/ 

5. (2024, January 18). Is Belly Dancing Cultural Appropriation? Explained. Tessas Dance. Retrieved May 21, 2026, from https://tessasdance.com/is-belly-dancing-cultural-appropriation/ 

6. Dorie, S. (2023, June 8). Examining appreciation versus appropriation in the Springfield belly dance community. The Chronicle. https://www.chronicle1909.com/2023/06/08/examining-appreciation-versus-appropriation-in-the-springfield-belly-dance-community/