By Yerehny Limon, October 3, 2023
From Loteria to mental health awareness, Cal Poly Pomona students, faculty and staff can come together to celebrate Latinx Heritage Month from Sept. 15 until Oct. 17.
Latinx Heritage Month is an annual celebration in the United States to recognize all the Latinx community has contributed to the country all while acknowledging their history and culture.
The celebration kicked off Sept. 15 on the second floor of the University Library which displayed books written by Latinx authors. The University Library also held a Loteria event on Sept. 19.
Loteria is a game like Bingo, but instead of numbers and letters on the cue card, Loteria uses icons and phrases that are connected to the Latinx community. Players can expect to see icons such as a watermelon known as “La Sandía,” “El Valiente” the brave or a bell known as “La Campana.” Once a person gets four square or icons, they yell “Loteria!.”
Jarelie Castellon, animal science student, joined CECCHE on a hike to paint the CPP letters in colors that represent the different Latinx flags. Those colors being green, yellow, red and yellow which are often used in Latinx flags.
Along with the University Library, the César E. Chávez Center for Higher Education also organizes events to celebrate Latinx Heritage Month. The center has hosted “Sana con CECCHE: Demystifying Mental Health,” partnering with a Counseling and Psychological Services counselor discussing mental health issues among Latinx students on campus.
Students, faculty and staff were also able to learn about Mexican American and Filipino farm workers uniting for the Agbayani Village hosted by the University Library. With speakers such as director Kent Wong, José Calderón and Marissa Pulido to discuss all that Mexican American and Filipinos did for the Agbayani Village. They spoke about the Agbayani Village to teach about the poor treatments farm workers went through in the 1960s and to bring awareness to all they had done for the United States.
With the celebration being a month long, members of the Latinx community have different ways of celebrating and honoring their culture during Latinx Heritage Month. Students like Raquel Hernandez, English education student, mentioned how she and her family celebrated Latinx Heritage Month by watching the Mexican Independence Day celebration, or the “grito” aka the yell, that showcases their fight from freedom against the Spanish on Sep 15.
Many of CPP’s events for this year’s celebration brings the Latinx community together. For students that want to participate in Latinx Heritage Month, Hernadez mentioned how students can show their support for the Latinx community.
“Food is the biggest thing, (a student can do to participate) bringing dishes from different countries,” Hernadez said. “Dia de los Muetros is a pretty big (event), even though it’s really Mexican, everyone enjoys it.”
Although students were pleased with the events held to honor Latinx Heritage Month, some felt that more could have been done in future event to broaden representation.
Sudents, faculty and staff should be able to learn about different cultures that are not their own within the Latinx community.
Hospitality management student, Valeria Delgado wants more representation of the different Latinx cultures that could be represented for future Latinx Heritage Months.
Castellon also mentioned the idea of having events that showcase Latinx’s culture with performances and music. She mentioned how she would like to see performances like folklorico in future Latinx Heritage Month celebrations from CPP. While Hernandez wants to revisit an event that the Asian Pacific Islanders and CECCHE hosted where they painted together.
Many of the events on campus are centered on educating or helping the Latinx community for in future endeavors. Castellon talked about what she would like to see CPP do in the future for Latinx Heritage Month to showcase the community in a fun manner.
There are still many events that students, faculty and staff can attend to show their support for the Latinx community or to learn more about the different cultures within the Latinx community.
Photo credit: Yehereny Limon (with mural created by Jules Barbosa)
