Different flags, same country

That was just an example of the Colectividades. Once a year, in November, people and organizations representing the largest of many ethnic and national communities that helped form Argentina gather together to showcase their dances, food and customs. Mostly food, really, but the dances can be quite good as well. You can sometimes guess at the relative size and wealth of the community in question by looking at their stands and tents. Catalonia (Catalunya!), for example, has a huge lot with several tents, neon signs, and painted signs where this part of Spain is proudly called un país, a country. The other Spanish communities have separate lots as well. On the other hand, there's also the case of nations that have split into several countries after they came to Argentina, as you can see above...

Even as the world is tearing itself apart, it is refreshing for me to see a state-sponsored celebration of immigration and diversity that has never, ever, been marred by ethnic or racial conflicts. Consider how today, in the US, many people are voting based with their minds focused on that issue. I took the following picture thinking about that. It's not good, but check the small flags and see who's standing next to who, back there on the left.

Yes, those are Lebanon, Iran and Syria, lined up after Japan. If anything, this is why I'd stay in Argentina, where (90% of the time) ethnicity is no more than a fact of life. We have precious little to celebrate, but this surely counts.