The Cal State Long Beach International Student Association will present the 42nd Annual International Dinner and Culture Show on April 26, with food and entertainment from around the world.
The event will take place at The Pointe in the Walter Pyramid from 6 to 9:30 p.m. According to the ISA, the theme of this year’s celebration is “spirit of humanity” in light of the recent President’s Forum on International Human Rights.
“America is still part of the world,” said Kee Chang, an international student adviser in the Center for International Education. “It’s not just us and them, it’s we. That’s one thing we forget.”
The dress code for the event is formal or traditional attire and will provide a multi-course menu will include ethnic cuisine from Asia, the Pacific Islands and Europe.
“Long Beach is so diverse,” Chang said. “We want people to come with a blank mind and to show international students for who they are.”
The event is organized almost entirely by students, who have made the posters, seating plans and menus.
“It is always a challenge to put on a show. You have to be creative and balance the budget. What is most important is to work as a team,” Chang said.
ISA member Artha Salado, a senior mechanical engineering major from Sri Lanka, is one of the main organizers of the event. He will be wearing a black Sri Lanka national outfit, specially made for the event and sent from home.
“The spirit of humanity is the common theme that brings us together it involves everybody,” Salado said, explaining how the ISA chose the theme based on what is currently going on in the world, such as the issues in Tibet.
The meal will be followed by eight musical performances from international students and local entertainers representing different cultural backgrounds. There will be belly-dancing, salsa from the CSULB Salsa Club, Native American dancing from Danza Azteca Chichimeca, and West African drumming by Malik Sow and Company.
Brandy Bandaruk, a junior recreation and leisure studies major, will be performing a Tahitian dance. She is a member of the group Hana Hou Polynesia, which performs traditional dances from Hawaii, Tahiti, Samoa and New Zealand.
“People are not aware of the Polynesian culture,” Bandaruk said. “I want to give a little taste of what the culture is like.”
For the third year, Grupo Folklórico Mexica de CSULB will perform diverse dances of the regions of Mexico.
“It’s something we do with great pride. We are representing Mexico. It’s an honor,” said the group’s Vice President Jesus Magdaleno, an art education graduate student.
“Through sharing of food and performances of different cultures, we hope to exemplify the value of diversity. I am glad we are able to contribute this diversity represented to on this campus and in the city of Long Beach,” said Woo Sung Jung, president of the ISA, in a statement.
Seating is limited to 150 places and the event has sold out for the last four years, according to the CIE. Eleven out of the 19 tables have already been booked for this year’s event.
The event is sponsored by the ISA, with co-sponsorship from Associated Students, Inc., and is supported by the CIE, the Office of the President and Provost.
