Buenas CLC Comunidad!
I’m Marcela Torres-Cervantes, Associate Director at the Carolina Latinx Center, and it’s my pleasure to greet you as we wrap up the 2024 Latinx Heritage Month! For those unfamiliar, Latinx Heritage Month (also known as Hispanic Heritage Month) is celebrated nationwide from September 15th to October 15th to honor Latinx people, history, and futures in the U.S. Here at UNC, we work with a dedicated planning committee to craft a theme that guides our celebration, and this year’s focus was La Llama de Orgullo: Embrace The Fire Within. This powerful theme encouraged us to unleash our inner passions and bring our unique energy to every classroom, meeting, and space we enter. This month we enjoyed hearing from insightful speakers, social and educational activities, and of course lots of delicious food! Enjoy this month’s newsletter, where we reflect on our amazing programs, and don’t forget to share—what lights your fire? To join our newsletter complete this form.
LHM Kickoff: On September 13th, we had our Kickoff at the CLC, and although the weather was not the best, we made sure to make the most out of the situation! The purpose of this event is to gather all Latinx students and get energized for the upcoming events to celebrate us and our culture. We had our incredible organizations like AMEXCAN, Mi Pueblo, Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity, SUIE, Latinos in Tech, Siembra, Omega Phi Beta, and NAHJ, among many others! Each one of the organizations sold different kinds of food to raise money for upcoming events. It’s safe to say that Kickoff was a hit!
DIY Volcanoes: Our first Fuego Friday for LHM where students gathered and created their own volcanoes using Paper mâché, paint, baking soda, and vinegar. The eruption was not only a fun and exciting visual but also symbolized the fire within each of us like our passion, energy, and drive as a community. The event brought creativity, laughter, and connection among everyone who participated. It was a great time with a lot of fun!
Yo Voto Party: Our second event took place at the Carolina Latinx Center and was meant to encourage voter registration to those people who wanted to register to vote. Not only did we enjoy delicious food and great music, but there was tabling from the following organizations: El Pueblo, Planned Parenthood, Generation Action, & Next-Gen America. These groups provided valuable resources on voting rights, health, and activism. We thank everyone who came and got registered to vote in the upcoming election!
Latinx Heritage Soccer game: Our newest tradition during Latinx Heritage Month is the Latinx Heritage Soccer Game. This year, we hosted a match during halftime of the women’s soccer game against Louisville University. Our organizations, AMEXCAN, the LHM Committee, and ALPHA, went head-to-head in a spirited penalty shootout. First up, AMEXCAN faced off against ALPHA, where AMEXCAN came out with a victory. The final showdown between AMEXCAN and the LHM Committee was intense, leading to a sudden-death match. However, the LHM Committee managed to win! We cannot wait for next year’s game!
Carnaval: The biggest and most anticipated event of Latinx Heritage Month, hosted by Mi Pueblo, was truly a night to remember. Carnaval brought together students, families, and community members to celebrate our culture. The evening featured incredible performances from Que Rico, a live mariachi, and Tlazohtizn, a local folkloric group from Chapel Hill. We also had a great DJ and most importantly, the environment was filled with laughter and excitement. In addition, we had different organizations like AMEXCAN, Siembra, Caribbean Student Association, Latinos in Tech, SUIE, ALPFA, CAUSA, Omega Phi Beta, Lambda Upsilon Lambda & more that hosted fun events where students could participate in games and win prizes.
Highlight: John Patrick Flores, also known as JP Flores, is a PhD candidate in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology at UNC Chapel Hill. Atlas de Hispanos y Latinos Científicos Inspiradores is an organization that was started by JP and a group of people whose mission is to show that representation matters. His original list of students involved was 400 students, and now 200 other people have decided to join this amazing program not just Hispanic people are represented but also an atlas that Indigenous and queer people are involved. In the future, his goal is to implement this program in many high school curricula where he can inspire other scientists and create diversity in a workplace that is predominantly white-coded. We love to see Latino Excellence!
Keynote Speaker: On October 7th, 2024, our Keynote Speaker, Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez, renowned for using storytelling as a tool for resistance and empowerment for marginalized voices, particularly within the Latinx community, delivered a powerful address. In her keynote, she emphasized the transformative power of narrative to challenge societal norms and amplify underrepresented perspectives. Her speech delved into themes such as intergenerational trauma, colonization, and sexism, while also celebrating the resilience and strength of women in her community, as captured in her book For Brown Girls with Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts: A Love Letter to Women of Color. Her talk was deeply personal, drawing from the experiences of Latinx women, and explored how family and community shape identity and foster resilience.
While this month has been filled with exciting events, we can’t help but think of our community of Western North Carolina who were devastated by Hurricane Helene. The impact of the storm has left many families struggling to rebuild their lives, and as we come together to celebrate our culture and heritage, we must also find ways to support those affected. There are various ways to help, whether through financial donations, volunteering, or spreading awareness. To learn more on how to help click here.
I hope you enjoyed this month’s newsletter and discovered something new about our events. The best part about having a center like ours is that we celebrate year-round! While Latinx Heritage Month may be ending, we’ll continue honoring our community and are gearing up for our big spring event, La Conferencia! This year’s theme builds on the energy of Latinx Heritage Month and invites our presenters and attendees to ‘spread their flame’ by connecting and growing together at La Conferencia: Encendiendo Nuestra Llama! Stay tuned to our social media and future newsletters for information on how to apply to present or register—we can’t wait to see you there.
Saludos familia!
Marcela Torres-Cervantes
Associate Director, Carolina Latinx Center
Dayanara Camacho-Galicia
CLC Student Ambassador for Communications and Development
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