UIC students celebrate Latinx Heritage Month
Students gather for Plaza in the Quad Sept. 22.
On Sept. 22, students gathered in the quad in celebration of the Latinx Heritage Month, which began Sept. 15 and continues until Oct. 15.
This excellent idea of celebrating the independence of Latin America countries was introduced by the Latinx community in collaboration with other Latin departments, such as the Latin American Recruitment and Educational Service Program (LARES), Latin American and Latino Studies (LALS), Latino Cultural Center LCC, to name a few.
The Latinx community stands for social justice, community service, culture, and unity. Although UIC has a diverse student population, this group created an inclusive event in which everyone, regardless of their cultural background, feels welcomed.
At approximately 11a.m, the event kicked off with UIC Radio (DJ CeaseDays) playing different types of Latino music. About 10 Latino organizations and food vendors were present, building their stations before the amassing of students.
Cristian Baeza
“I am a little surprised about the number of students present at this event,” said Cristian Baeza, president of the Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity. “I think that what helped make this happen was the successful advertising, the great location, the hours chosen, the free food and also the music.”
Students formed a long que as they waited for the free nourishment such as elote (corn on a cob), paletas (popsicles), and churros provided by the organizations. Others were interacting with the different Latin organizations present, such as the Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement (HACE), Delta Psi Alpha Multicultural CO-ED Fraternity, Mesa Mexican Student of Aztlan, Movimiento Latino Dance Team (MLX), and more.
Alejandro De La Cruz, senior majoring in economics and the treasurer of the Mesa Mexican Student of Aztlan organization, was happy with the involvement of UIC students.
“It’s a great event because a lot of students are here and are participating in different aspects of this celebration, and of course signing up with different Latino organizations,” she said. “This shows that a lot more students are interested in Latino culture than we actually thought.”
Plaza in the Quad was an effective event as the Latinx organization, as well as other Latino organizations, were able to successfully involve the diverse population of UIC’s students and staff in the festivities of the independence of Latin countries.
“This is our first time and we did pretty well,” Baeza said. “Next year, we plan to make this even more interesting and engaging. Just wait and see.”
Temitope Eddna Odedoyin is majoring in English and fully concentrating in media and professional writing. Apart from writing, she has have a passion for painting, and enjoys using watercolors, oil paint, acrylic, charcoal, oil pastel. She also has an interest in creative writing and short stories. She believes that art — through writing and painting — is a way of expressing one’s feelings.
