Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, honors the culture and contributions of both Hispanic and Latino Americans, according to hispanicheritagemonth.gov. To honor the culture and contributions at the University of Indianapolis, The Student Organization of Latinos is spreading awareness.
SOL will be hosting various events for Hispanic Heritage Month, according to sophomore nursing major and Vice President of the Spirit Committee for SOL Mya Southwood. Southwood said that to expose their culture, these events are open to campus, and will be both in-person and virtual.
“We have the movie night that is coming up, [I’m] really excited about that,” Southwood said. “We also have a ‘lunch and learn’ and we have one more, the Day of the Dead [event]. It’s coming up and I’m excited about that too.”
Senior psychology major and Executive President of SOL Ruth Romero said that to round out Hispanic Heritage Month, SOL will be showing the film “Coco” on Oct. 10. Southwood said that for this event they are trying to have it be both in-person and virtual so people can watch it with them even if they are not physically there.
The reason SOL chose “Coco” was because it’s about the Day of the Dead and represents Latino and Hispanic Culture. “Coco” also aligns with their last event which will take place on Nov. 2 on Dia de Los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, according to Romero.
“The Day of the Dead event will be where we put up an altar,” Romero said. “We have a PowerPoint [and] some crafts to celebrate Day of the Dead. People can bring in photos of past loved ones, past pets, a celebrity that they adored [and] put it on our altar, or even just bring in presents to symbolize or represent a past loved one that they had.”
According to Romero, SOL wants to share their customs, traditions and food with the community. Romero said the goal of these events is to showcase that Latinos and Hispanics are present on campus.
“We [SOL] want the UIndy community to know that we’re here. We are a very small minority group, so it’s just good to know [and] to show that, you know, we’re here [and] this is a very diverse community,” Romero said.
This is SOL’s third year celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, according to Romero. She hopes that even after she graduates from UIndy, the tradition of celebrating will continue, she said.
“Everyone should just come [and] join our Zoom meetings. We’re really fun people. We want to show you how diverse and how much fun we can have, despite all the differences we may have,” Romero said. “Especially now in this time [and] in this climate. Especially with the COVID[-19] restrictions that we had to be a part [of]. We’re a group of people that has always put forward that being together is the most important thing …”
