On March 15, the St. Thomas University International Student Association (STUISA) hosted their annual Multicultural Fair in the Kinsella Auditorium.
This is a fundraising event with all proceeds going to bursaries for international students, featuring artistic performances, a traditional fashion show and a food fest with 14 dishes from all around the world.
Alejandra Baca, vice-president of STUISA, highlighted the event’s significance in celebrating cultural diversity, especially for first-year students.
“We all try to celebrate our culture in little ways every single day, speaking your language with your friends, or with the music you play … but I think it’s a great time to be able to celebrate on such a bigger level,” she said. “To have way more people recognize it and to see the blend of cultures.”
Baca also mentioned she has seen an increase in Canadian participation in the multicultural fair since 2023. She acknowledges that it has been a “struggle” to get the Canadian community to come to international students’ events, but she’s satisfied with the inclusion of Canadian dishes at the Food Fest last November and at the multicultural fair.
“Canadians don’t always know that they’re invited to our events, that we want them to show up. They think it’s just for internationals and that’s not true,” she said.
“We want everyone to go and everyone to celebrate because Canadians have their own culture.”
“When we come together, we’re not only sharing these pieces with each other, we’re also building something new. A home away from home,” Testas said in her opening speech.
“An event like this doesn’t happen by its own. I want to thank our amazing volunteers who helped stay until 2 a.m. making this event happen.”
Testas also gave credit to her all-women executive board and region ambassadors for supporting STUISA’s events throughout the academic year.
“These amazing women have been alongside me all year making this kind of event to bring people together, to celebrate our cultures and to make unforgettable memories,” she said.
Chaunté Blackwood read a poem that delved into the concept of cultural legacy, linking it to a mosaic made from diverse fragments that together form a cohesive image.
“Similarly, my people, the Jamaican people, are comprised of various combined cultures that traveled across continents and oceans, resulting in a multifarious melting pot of culture,” she said.
“We sat in a circle, passing around rocks mimicking the labor of men in the quarries, unceasingly breaking limestone for mortar, the multi-colored fragments of a mosaic are held together by mortar, just as how the cultural mosaic of my little island is reinforced by my people’s strength and pride,” recited Blackwood.
