Cultural performances and a speech from University of Wisconsin Dean of Students Luoluo Hong comprised much of the 22nd annual Multicultural Orientation and Reception held Friday at the Memorial Union and Great Hall.
The event, which annually attracts more than 600 participants, is geared toward incoming students and is intended to raise awareness about diversity issues on campus and all of the resources available to students of color. This year’s event revolved around the theme “The More you Know.”
The evening was filled with ethnic dances and performances from several student groups, including a performance from the University Gospel Choir, Latin and Potawatomi dances and a poetry slam. Performances such as the hula dance demonstrated by the Hawai’i Club at the beginning of the show generated wide audience approval.
Audience members, including Dean Hong, were included in the night’s events when called upon during a Potawatomi dance performed by the student organization Wunk Sheek.
Teatro Ollin, an educational theater that raises awareness about issues faced by the Chicano students on campus, took a different approach to the informal gathering by encouraging discussion about what it means to be Chicano.
Another part of the evening was the MCOR Poetry Slam. The slam, titled “The Voice of the Unheard: Confronting, Expressing, Uniting for Social Justice,” addressed issues faced by students of color, notions of freedom and what initiatives must be made to facilitate change. The slam consisted of five students each expressing their most intimate concerns, while the underlying theme of freedom resounded in each piece.
To conclude the formal segment of MCOR, Hong addressed the audience about the responsibilities and challenges of being a UW student. Hong welcomed new students and expressed pride in being involved in MCOR. She was both personable and stern with the audience and said she understood the challenges of being a person of color.
In keeping with the evening’s theme, Hong encouraged students to find out what is happening on campus. She asked students to seriously contemplate UW’s professed image as a “progressive, top-notch and diverse” institution. Though she did not contradict this claim, she challenged students to question how true it is and what can be done to better fulfill it.
Hong said students are the most powerful drivers of change in our society and can make things happen. She encouraged students to question all aspects of the university system while exercising respect for those in leadership roles.
“Most importantly, never apologize for who you are,” Hong said in her closing remarks.
The evening’s festivities continued with a Multicultural Student Organization Fair and a dance sponsored by University Housing, giving students the opportunity to learn a few ethnic dances.
