First published in the July 9 print issue of the Glendale News-Press.
Glendale resident Maria Bassil is among 20 competitors for this year’s Miss Arab USA pageant, which will crown its winner next week during a ceremony in Arizona.
Bassil, whose family moved to Glendale after the 2020 explosion in Beirut, said she aims to generate public interest in providing assistance to the beleaguered Mediterranean nation, which continues to experience economic and political turbulence that preceded and was exacerbated by the disaster. As part of the competition, she is raising funds for relief work in Lebanon.
“When we found out about the [pageant], it was really exciting. It was something that would change our lives if I got it,” Bassil said in an interview with the News-Press this week. “I hope to use the platform to raise awareness to everything that’s happened in Lebanon. They really do need our help at all levels. After the explosion, everything went down from there. We were very lucky that we got to leave and had that chance.”
Bassil, who is a Glendale High School Class of 2022 graduate, and the other competitors emerged among 180 total applicants for this year’s pageant, the first since 2019 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. At GHS, Bassil said she joined the dance drill team, took on a part-time job to help support her family and volunteered with the Glendale Police Department to promote safe driving practices. She hopes to one day be a veterinarian.
In throwing her hat in the ring for Miss Arab USA, Bassil drew upon the rich cultural history and religious plurality of Lebanon in her hopes to be an ambassador for other Arab Americans.
“I applied to Miss Arab to make my voice heard, to ask for help for Lebanon, and to solicit solidarity among all Arab nations because our unity is our strength,” she said in an interview with the organization. “I will strive to project the best image of Arabs by representing our culture, art, heritage, hospitality, savory food, strong family ties and fusion of religions coexisting in harmony.”
Having moved to Glendale during the pre-vaccine era of the pandemic, Bassil enrolled at GHS while it was in a remote learning situation. She noted that was a challenge for her, one that she began to overcome once her senior year began and school had resumed a relatively normal in-person schedule.
“The move was pretty hard for me,” she told the News-Press. “I was really heartbroken at the time. It took me a lot of time to adjust to living here.”
In her bio with the Miss Arab USA organization, Bassil noted that her 16th birthday was the last she celebrated in her homeland, before the explosion and economic fallout prompted her family to emigrate. On top of those hardships, her mother had just been diagnosed with breast cancer, she said.
“I witnessed Lebanon’s economic collapse, revolution, COVID-19, my mom’s battle with cancer and the third most catastrophic explosion in history,” she wrote in her bio. “Every challenge inspired me to develop and grow stronger as a person. Now, at 18, I share my experience with the world to show the resilience and natural beauty of Arab women inside out.”
A fluent Arabic, English and French speaker, Bassil said she enjoys playing piano, dancing and drawing and hopes to use her interpersonal skills to be an influencer for her peers.
According to the organization, Miss Arab USA was founded to help advance the causes for young Arab women and to unite them in celebration of their cultures.
“This is a platform for young ladies to achieve personal growth and development, take pride in their heritage, discover their inner beauty in achieving their humanitarian goals in life and lay a strong foundation as leaders of the future,” the organization said.
In addition to the crowning of Miss Arab, there is a People’s Choice contest, where people are invited to donate to a contestant’s cause and cast a vote for them. The winner of this will be crowned Miss Arab People’s Choice and is guaranteed a Top 5 finalist position.
To donate or cast a vote for Bassil, visit vote.missarab.org/index.php/maria-bassil.
