Last week was Solidaridad Week for Hermadad de Sigma Iota Alpha Inc. (SIA) with various events, all with the goal of educating and promoting unity on campus.
“Solidarity is a main goal of SIA. Unity within the community, our campus, and organizations,” says SIA President Juliana Calcagno.
The week began on Monday (September 12) with the selling of Champagne Cupcakes. All proceeds from that event went to the child the sorority is supporting in Honduras. They provide aid to the child’s family to help them pay for the cost of living as well as education.
“We are standing united and together, even with a child that’s all the way in Honduras,” says Calcagno. She continues saying “He is our child, we love him.”
The week continued Tuesday (September 13) with a more serious tone. Entitled ‘Solidarity through the eyes of racial conflict included a short presentation and open discussion about the atrocities that have happened recently. Events discussed covered a wide variety of topics from the shootings in Orlando to the current controversy surrounding the recent rape court rulings.
The fun picked up again on Wednesday (September 14) with the Solidarity bracelet event. A table was set up all day in the Bartels Programming Space where students could create their own bracelets to represent whatever they want.
“Some people made colors of their country’s flags for more of a cultural unity, some people made flags with the colors of their Greek organizations, the meanings behind them varied per person,” says Calcagno.
This event was extremely successful in bringing together the campus community with something simple but fun. Calcagno says the bracelets are her favorite part for this reason. Students come together to make bracelets and talk about their histories and learn from each other.
SIA member Catherine Verena Luna agrees saying, “The fact that we can share each others stories and have the socialization aspect, people that didn’t know each other got to know each other.”
Thursday (September 15) continued the week with an event entitled “Let me SIA Walk Out”. The event consisted of a discussion on the Walk Out that happened in 1960 when Hispanic Children were suppressed in public schools, as well as current issues still taking place today. Video clips were shown before each discussion to highlight aspects of the suppression in 1960 that are still around today.
Friday (September 16) concluded the week with the “All Hands In” event. Students gathered on the Botwinik/Bixler Quad to dip their hands in paint and leave their handprints on a banner. The goal of the event was to show that “all of our hand prints are the same.” It reflected the week’s theme and served as an excellent reminder that unity is an important part of any campus community. The banner will be on display at the new Diversity Center.
The week was a huge success, drawing many groups of students to the various events. It gave the campus community a chance to learn more about each other to better support each other.
“Solidarity relies on understanding everyone’s path, being united and understanding each other and our differences,” says Luna.
The campus community is certainly on the right path to that understanding and solidarity.
