Many groups of Cerritos College co-hosted the cultural showcase event in support of immigrants in front of the conference center patio on April 30, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., where cultural food was given out and games were played along with live performances.
All the organizers who helped make this event were the ISA club, Helping Hands Club, Psychology Club, Art History Museum Club, MECHA, Umoja, Sociology Club, Environmental Club and ASCC.
Students and faculty members who attended checked in with a QR code to receive a card for free food.
To claim the free food you must participate in the activities the booths provide and get a signature
The booths at the event were Hispanic/Latino, Black/African American, Asian and Indigenous.
A live Folklórico performance, a traditional dance from Jalisco Mexico was from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. and a special Achjamen guest educator.
Folklórico dances are a vibrant representation of Mexican culture, encompassing indigenous traditions and Spanish colonial influences.
In the hot sun students and staff were enjoying the live Folklórico performance, food and refreshments.
Food on the menu was cochinita pibil, barbacoa de pollo, rice and beans, jerk chicken, tamales, potato balls, aguas frescas, filipino mango pies, Korean kimbap, chapjae, mandu and more.
Jonathan Guerrero, officer of the humanitarian club, political science, major said why this event was important, “We wanted to get a cultural event to bring out each body of students to get out and explore different cultures, an important event to have interaction with each club and different culture.”
A main goal for the students to take away from this event was the Hispanic, African American, Asian and Indigenous booths to learn something new and be open to coming out of their comfort zones.
“Here at Cerritos College I feel like there needs to be more interaction between the students,” Guerrero said.
The Hispanic booths were playing Lotería, a traditional Mexican board game with authentic Mexican food and pan duces.
The Asian booth had Tinikling, a traditional Filipino dance that was set up as a game, garments from different Asian cultures as well as Indian and Vietnamese that are worn on special occasions or for funerals with Filipino and Korean food.
The Umoja program booth had dominoes and black trivia games for gift cards and beads from African culture.
Volunteer Naomi Knox came out for the indigenous booth to show Southern California coastal culture being indigenous to the Southern California coastal.
Showing parts of the deer, how they would’ve been able to use the pelts, use the bones all the parts of the animal, same thing with shells being able to eat the food from the scallops and then turning those into jewelry, all kinds of utilitarian basket for cooking for bowls and Windowing baskets and the materials used to create it.
Knox said, “We are still here [Indigenous peoples] continuing our culture and the land that we live on belongs to our ancestors and we want to continue those traditions.”
Cassandra Ruiz, a psychology major, said she loved the event because it showed inclusivity.
