Another student organization on campus is the Latino Student Alliance, or LSA. LSA, along with the Black Student Union (BSU) and Hmong and South East Asian American Club (HASEAAC), is part of the Multicultural Resource Center, housed in Room 208 in the Dreyfus University Center. According to the UW-Stevens Point Involvement Network, the LSA is “a student organization that works to promote a deeper understanding of Latin American cultures through educational events, presentations, and entertainment. During the last week of October, LSA hosted one of these events: a Día de los Muertos celebration on campus.

 

History.com defines Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, as “a Mexican holiday where families welcome back the souls of their deceased relatives for a brief reunion that includes food, drink and celebration.” October 25 was a true celebration of this, as it marked the opening ceremony of the Día de los Muertos exhibit and ofrenda featured in the Edna Carlsten Gallery on the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point campus. The celebration included traditional food and a local mariachi band, sponsored by both LSA and the Multicultural Resource Center.

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                                                                                                        Maria Harris, the coordinator of the Multicultural Resource Center, was

                                                                                                        excited to bring this important Mexican holiday to the Stevens Point

                                                                                                        community.

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                                                                                                        “I didn’t want this event to be only for our Mexican community,” Harris said. “I

                                                                                                         wanted it to be for anyone and everyone who felt comfortable bringing

                                                                                                         pictures of loved ones to actually add to the ofrenda for the duration of the

                                                                                                         exhibit. It’s that reminder that we do have loved ones who have passed on,

                                                                                                         but we are celebrating their life, we are remembering them and the light that

                                                                                                         they were rather than mourning their passing.”

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                                                                                                         Junior wildlife ecology student Regan Russel was excited to experience a

                                                                                                         culture other than her own.

 

                                                                                                           “It’s a beautiful thing,” Russel said. “I

                                                                                                            think it’s a wonderful opportunity to

showcase and highlight Mexican culture and to come together as a community.

Stuff like this is really powerful and beautiful and we should definitely encourage it

campus-wide whenever we get the opportunity.”

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In general, organization leaders enjoy spreading their cultures to the student

population and to local community members. America Ambriz-Zermeno, president

of LSA, spoke more about the mission of the organization.

 

                                                                                                  “The club is there to help Latino students get

                                                                                                     more involved and have a safe place, and to

                                                                                                     show people more about our different

                                                                                                     cultures,” Ambriz-Zermeno said. “[We

                                                                                                     want] to have people learn more about different cultures and have the opportunity

                                                                                                     to engage and learn.”

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                                                                                                     Ambriz-Zermeno explained why this is so important, both to her and the community

                                                                                                     at large.

 

                                                                                                     “I think it’s always important to learn more about different cultures and put yourself

                                                                                                      in different environments because you can create different connections with

                                                                                                      different people and learn more overall.”

 

                                                                                                       Russel agreed with this sentiment.

 

“I think culture is what makes us fundamentally who we are as people,” Russel said. “We can just learn so much from one another, so having exposure to other cultures and to other experiences helps us grow as people, helps us expand our world views and how we see ourselves and one another, so I think it’s very important that we have events that highlight other cultures, that we support and love one another within that.”

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