Club leaders say annual event honors culture and tradition, increases understanding, raises awareness and unifies students
Written by Noah Shoaf
Despite differences in language, years of traditions and geographical separation, BYU–Hawaii’s Culture Night 2019 broke those boundaries, according to BYUH ohana members, as 27 clubs used music, dance and storytelling to celebrate and educate. Culture Night 2019 was on Friday, March 22 and Saturday, March 23 in the Cannon Activities Center.
Throughout the two-night event, clubs told stories of war, love and individuality. From Hong Kong’s “Lion Dance,” to Mongolia’s Genghis Khan celebration, performers said their performances were more than a way to entertain. To members of New Zealand Club, Culture Night was a way to stand against any form of terrorism and racism, said Elijah Wanoa, a senior from New Zealand majoring in political science.
Like New Zealand, Australia dedicated its performance to the victims and their families of the massacre at two Christchurch mosques on March 15. When the Latin American Club closed its set, the members gathered wearing shirts coordinating with the colors of the Venezuelan flag.
Saba Ramirez, a senior from Ecuador majoring in communications said, “People are asking about what is happening... We wanted to make it more obvious to people on what is happening over there. People are actually suffering.” Like the clubs who used their stage time to raise awareness, the Hawaii and New Zealand Clubs also chose to focus their performances on the 100th anniversary of the Laie Hawaii Temple because they said the temple blessed their ancestors and in turn is blessing them.
The notion that Culture Night was more than a celebration was evident with this year's changes, said Student Clubs Manager Fahren Niu, a junior from Laie majoring in political science. She said instead of having emcees, the BYUH Media Production Center staff compiled introduction videos where club leaders described the meaning of their performances.
Niu added this a challenging task elevated the event with its highlights of the people behind the performances. Some people behind the performances were Debora Putri Wijaya, a freshman from Nevada majoring in TESOL, and Secretary of the Cambodian Club Pattica San, a sophomore majoring in business management.
According to Wijaya, Culture Night was a way to overcome the disconnect that comes from being Indonesian but raised in America. “When I first joined Indonesian Club last semester, I kind of felt weird because I didn’t grow up in Indonesia like everyone else. I don’t even know the language very well. But by being a part of Culture Night, I was able to spend more time with everyone. I felt like they didn’t care whether I knew their language or grew up in the same place as them.” San said dancing in Culture Night was a way to represent his childhood growing up in an orphanage in Cambodia and being the dance teacher there.
From Kiribati, Kimberly Tetabwa Tokanang, a freshman majoring in political science, said Culture Night helped her cope with homesickness. In the Gamers Club, President Kristen Conrad, a senior majoring in English from Washington, said she wanted people to understand in the gamer’s culture, there is a place for everyone.
The article was originally published in the Ke Alaka'i April 2019 Edition. https://issuu.com/kealakai/docs/culture_night_issuu