Our Journey: International Club Hosts Their 52nd Annual Feast of Nations
Paqazi Xiong performing during the 51st Annual Feast of Nations, 2019. Photo Courtesy of International Club.
International Club will be hosting their annual 52nd Feast of Nations on Feb. 22 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Kirby Ballroom and Marshall Performing Art Center. The event consists of food and a fashion show in Kirby Ballroom. The performances will be in MPAC and the events aims to celebrate their theme “Our Journey” which centralizes on how far UMD has come in honoring and sharing diverse cultures.
Considered to be one of UMD’s most popular events, there are usually more than 300 people attending this large event, including volunteers, performers, fashion show models, and attendees. Our Journey represents not only the International Club’s advancement through time, but also the act of celebrating different cultures.
President of the International Club, Andrea Molano, a junior with a major in International Studies, was inspired by the concept of the theme when she found past records of the event.
Andrea Molano. Photo Courtesy of Christyna Yang.
“We found a box full of pictures and VHS tapes dating back all the way to the 80s” Molano said. “The theme of the event is us celebrating our past and our present. Our journey through UMD.”
The treasurer of International Club, Muhammad Fawad Khan, a senior majoring in Chemical Engineering, feels that the event through time has become very personal and impactful for the club.
Fawad Khan in the 2019 Feast of Nations fashion show. Photo Courtesy of International Club.
“We wanted to show how International Club has progressed throughout the years,” Khan said. “Even though it's been more than two to three decades we’re still celebrating the same thing when it comes to culture and having so many different people in one place.”
Throughout the past 51 years, the International Club has hosted their Feast of Nations and the PR of International Club, Vishrut Shrivastavais, a senior majoring in Computer Science, feels grateful and admiration for the past E-boards.
“We should thank our prior E-board for doing this because it’s been running for 52 years, so they must have done something good,” said Shrivastavais. “I feel like it’s our responsibility to make it go on to the next one. Since Duluth is a small community, we try to bring that culture here.”
Khan feels that the power of this event is creating bonds and immersing oneself into the multicultural community.
“When I was a freshman, even as a POC [People of Color], I would look in the MC [Multicultural Center], and I didn’t know if I wanted to go in there” said Khan. “But going to our biggest event in the fall, Taste of UMD, or even Feast of Nation, you meet people, get more comfortable with the people there, and you start getting into this community you've never been to before.”
Feast of Nations always hopes to include everyone.
Doreen Nyamwaya (left) and Elizabeth Tulinabitu (right) in the 2019 Feast of Nations fashion show. Photo Courtesy of International Club.
“It’s not just for people of color, it's for any culture,” said Molano. “Culture is who you are, it’s part of a nation. I think from the performances and the rest of celebrating cultures for someone who is not from an ethnic background, it would be important for them to come for not just learning about other cultures but also to understand them. Not only does it break stereotypes but now you understand their points of view.”
International Club will be selling tickets on Monday, Thursday, and Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Kirby Commons; $10 for UMD students and $15 for non-students.