MEGHAN GUATTERY
Special to The Leader
The opening ceremony for a month of cultural awareness took place on Sept. 15 in the Williams Center Multi-purpose Room (MPR).
National Hispanic/Latino History Month is celebrated from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. Latinos Unidos (LU), is partnering with the Ethnic Studies Speaker Series to host a variety of events on campus that focus on heritage and culture.
Nathalie Guzman, a senior social work major and president of LU has served on the executive board since her freshman year and has planned the last two history months on her own. This year, though, she says it was a team effort.
“Since we do not have an activities director, I planned it alongside the rest of my executive board members who were each designated an event to plan,” she said.
As Fredonia pushes for a more diverse campus community, student groups have been celebrating and sharing their cultures with the campus more and more.
“National Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month helps the campus become more diverse because so many people from so many different backgrounds and ethnicities come out to our events,” said Ben Bengert, a junior Spanish adolescent education major and secretary of LU. “It gives them a chance to see it first hand.”
Fei Wei, treasurer of LU, planned the event to kickstart the month of celebration.
“The opening ceremonies were really successful,” said Jordan Holmes, a junior Spanish adolescent education major and the co-treasurer of LU. “The presentations were really cool and the Brazilian international students spoke as a panel to the audience, answering questions about their lifestyle and what it’s like to be in America.”
On Sept. 19, Dr. Barbara Browning from Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, gave a presentation on the history and culture of capoeira, a Brazilian martial arts influenced dance and its role as a form of resistance.
La Tomatina, which was held on Sept. 20, featured bouncy houses, airbrush tattoos, zumba, raffles, performances by a cappella groups and DJ Moreno and, of course, a giant tomato fight.
“I’ve never planned an event before,” said Holmes, one of the two executive board members assigned to the event. “It was definitely a learning experience, and there was a lot of paperwork involved.”
The event was modeled after the famous La Tomatina that is held annually in Bunol, Spain. It has been dubbed the “World’s Largest Food Fight,” attracting upwards of 50,000 people each year to the city.
On Sept. 22 a screening of Innocent Voices was held in McEwen. The movie is set during the Salvadoran Civil War and focuses on militant children and injustice during the war.
An open forum will be held on Oct. 1 in McEwen Hall to discuss the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act.
“The DREAM Act is a law that is currently in legislation that basically says people who want to go to school who are immigrants will be allowed to,” said Guzman. “People who are not U.S. citizens have to pay for their school out of pocket, with no financial aid, and a lot of minorities do not get to finish school because of that.”
The DREAM Act was first introduced to the senate 2001. Since then, it has been sitting in legislation as administrators seeks to inform the community, while also receiving feedback, on the issue.
A rumba class will be offered on Oct. 2 at 8 p.m. in the Williams Center MPR. The rumba is a rhythmic, syncopated dance of Cuban origin.
A salsa class will also be offered on Oct. 4 at 2 p.m. in the MPR. Salsa is a type of ballroom dance of Puerto Rican origin, performed to upbeat contemporary Latin American music.
Comedian Maria Costa, of “Macho Men and the Women Who Love Them” and “Ugly Betty,” will perform her comedy show on Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. in McEwen G26.
“She will be talking about machismo,” said Guzman. “It’s kind of like the damsel in distress. Machismo, translated, means masculinity and strong masculine pride.”
Before her comedy show at Fredonia, Costa will be speaking on a similar topic at Dunkirk Middle and High School.
The closing ceremony, which will be held on Oct. 15 in the MPR, was planned by Bengert.
“For the closing ceremony I wanted to incorporate the heritage of Peru and tie in indigenous Inca history,” said Bengert. “I thought it would be great to not only include the Hispanic and Latino heritage, but to incorporate Native American history, too.”
Students of all ethnicities and cultures are welcome to join LU, which Holmes says strives to spread diversity throughout the campus, educate students on Latino culture and bridge the gap between Latino culture at home.
Latinos Unidos meets on alternating Thursdays at 8 p.m. in the Williams Center. The next general body meeting will be held on Sept. 25.