CAW garners attention
Multicultural events serve as conduit for diversity discussion
Jessica Chou
Issue date: 9/19/08 Section: Trinity Life
The Trinity Multicultural Network makes it its business to focus on the diversity of campus and bring attention to it. As an umbrella organization for the 12 cultural groups on campus, it specializes in cultural clubs and events.
"We provide these groups with funding and basically work PR for them," explained Senior Rachel Smith, co-chair of TMN. "I believe it was started to spread cultural awareness and help show off aspects of each culture and group and some of the amazing things they do."
This is the reason for CAW. Starting from the kick-off on the Coates Esplanade this past Monday, every day, culture groups hosted a different event created solely to inspire awareness of the different cultural groups found on campus, including the Autumn Moon Festival, co-hosted by the Chinese Culture Club and the Vietnamese Student Association, and Fast for a Day, hosted by the Muslim Student Association. Despite the fact that all these events are open to the public, some students do not feel that there is a strong interest from the majority of the campus.
"For a lot of these groups, it's just the group members who go to these events," Smith said.
The point of Cultural Awareness Week is to shine light on these events and to encourage people from all walks of life to take time to learn something they perhaps did not know before. The lack of response from some of the student body is discouraging, but not unexpected.
"I think that [many people] gravitate to what [they're] comfortable with" Bellur said. "Some people do feel awkward coming in because it's fear of the unknown; they don't know what to expect or what they will get out of it."
Junior Meena Alagappan agreed and elaborated on this view.
"It's hard [for people] to go up to a group of a different ethnicity and just talk to them because it's out of their comfort zone," Alagappan said. "On the outside, I think people wish they could just go to anything, but many times, they just don't feel comfortable."
"We provide these groups with funding and basically work PR for them," explained Senior Rachel Smith, co-chair of TMN. "I believe it was started to spread cultural awareness and help show off aspects of each culture and group and some of the amazing things they do."
This is the reason for CAW. Starting from the kick-off on the Coates Esplanade this past Monday, every day, culture groups hosted a different event created solely to inspire awareness of the different cultural groups found on campus, including the Autumn Moon Festival, co-hosted by the Chinese Culture Club and the Vietnamese Student Association, and Fast for a Day, hosted by the Muslim Student Association. Despite the fact that all these events are open to the public, some students do not feel that there is a strong interest from the majority of the campus.
"For a lot of these groups, it's just the group members who go to these events," Smith said.
The point of Cultural Awareness Week is to shine light on these events and to encourage people from all walks of life to take time to learn something they perhaps did not know before. The lack of response from some of the student body is discouraging, but not unexpected.
"I think that [many people] gravitate to what [they're] comfortable with" Bellur said. "Some people do feel awkward coming in because it's fear of the unknown; they don't know what to expect or what they will get out of it."
Junior Meena Alagappan agreed and elaborated on this view.
"It's hard [for people] to go up to a group of a different ethnicity and just talk to them because it's out of their comfort zone," Alagappan said. "On the outside, I think people wish they could just go to anything, but many times, they just don't feel comfortable."
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