Traditional dances, food and attire from around the globe filled the Golden Eagle Ballroom. The College of Professional and Global Education, in partnership with the International Student Organization, hosted the International Culture Night and Dinner on February 27.
The event was created to celebrate different cultures at Cal State LA. According to the International Student and Services Coordinator, Nancy Lam, the theme for this year was inclusivity.
“We wanted to include everyone, and engage the audience to learn about other cultures.” said Lam. “We also welcomed cultural attire which empowered many attendees and emphasized the importance of representation.”
The dinner sold out with over 140 people in attendance. Supporters of the event included: the Charter College of Education, Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, Athletics Department, domestic and international students.
Harkmore Lee, the Associate Dean for the College of Professional and Global Education, opened up the dinner with a few remarks about the event and honored the students that helped organize the event. Attendees then dined on international cuisine such as Italian, Asian and Mexican food.
Beck Bishop, the Master of Ceremony, later introduced Get Empowered; a live-performance group that aims to uplift and unite diverse groups of people through cultural dance, drumming and singing.
The performance began with a celebratory drum opening that featured sounds from Spain, Korea, Brazil and West Africa. The audience was then shown different styles of dance such as Flamenco, Korean and Asian fan and bell dance, Brazilian Capoeira and West African dance.
The event concluded with a interactive dance where participants and performers sang and danced in unity.
International student and Vice President of the International Student Organization, Elitsa Fileva, explained that having international events on campus is very important to her because it allows the international students to be part of the community.
“The International Cultural Night Dinner brings strangers together to socialize and learn about other cultures together,” said Lam. “It also brings unity by viewing the demographics of the attendees that are present at the Cultural Night and among us here at Cal State LA.”
