Before Hispanic Heritage Month ends Oct. 15, people across America and at Pepperdine will celebrate with food and time with friends and family to reconnect with their culture, said Ame Cividanes, Spanish Professor and LSA Advisor.
Sept. 15, is the start of Hispanic Heritage Month, where people of Latinx descent can have a greater focus on celebrating their heritage, Cividanes said.
Latinx is a term used to describe anyone who is a descendant of a Latin country. Hispanic only refers to members of the Latinx community who come from a Spanish-speaking country, according to the Spanish dictionary.
“It’s [Latinx is] an overlooked community,” said junior Lucas Borrilez. “There’s so much diversity and so much to be proud of.”
Borrilez said, at home, his family would normally be making Mexican and Puerto Rican dishes to celebrate.
“Mexican Independence Day is pretty big in our household,” Borrilez said. “Usually, we mark it by cooking a lot more Hispanic food than usual.”
However, he said being in school means he’s been celebrating by attending community events instead. Borrilez also said that he is already looking for ways to continually honor his heritage in the future.
“I feel a sense of duty taking our family higher and higher with each generation. I think that honors where we came from, what we left behind,” said Borrilez. “As soon as I have the capacity to do so, I think it’s really important to give back as well.”
Ways Pepperdine’s Community is Celebrating
Various organizations on Pepperdine’s campus, such as the Latinx Student Alliance, or LSA, have hosted various events for members and the general student body to learn and celebrate Latinx culture. The events include coffee talks, dessert receptions and inviting speakers to help bring awareness and community.
President of LSA, junior Sofia Reyes, said LSA strives to make these events well-known and accessible.
“A lot of our events are trying to bring back that familial aspect,” Reyes said. “Being with your abuela or your parents and eating food that feels like it’s food from home and talking about things that remind you of home — just being proud of our identity.”
Senior Kimberly Banda, LSA’s vice president of event planning, said LSA took students to an LA Dodgers game Sept. 19. LSA partnered with RISE to bring about thirty students to the game commemorating Hispanic Heritage Month. The organizations could provide tickets and transportation, allowing many of their members the opportunity to attend.
“That was really fun to attend and get to connect with everyone about our tradition and also watch a good game,” Banda said.
Cividanes said Pepperdine has been supportive of the Latinx organizations on campus because of the university’s values.
“That’s what Pepperdine stands for: families and communities,” Cividanes said.
Students Stories
Banda said she is Mexican American,and her parents both immigrated to Texas from Mexico. She is a first-generation student who takes pride in her heritage and the joy she gets from speaking Spanish with her friends.
“I’m proud to be Latina,” Banda said. “It’s always been instilled in me. Seeing them [my parents] do jobs they don’t want me to be doing has been my motivation, and speaking Spanish is something that I really, really value and don’t want to lose.”
Borrilez is a first-generation college student, and he said being Puerto Rican and Mexican along with his family’s experiences immigrating to America have shaped his viewpoint.
“It’s [Hispanic heritage is] a big part of my basic motivations on the day-to-day level,” Borrilez said.
Reminders for Malibu
Reyes grew up in Los Angeles before moving to Pepperdine for school. She also said growing up in L.A. shaped her view of Pepperdine she said.
“Going to Pepperdine, in a way, kind of feels like a culture shock even though it’s the same city,” Reyes said. “I’m only half an hour away from home, but it’s a very, very different version of Los Angeles. And I think it’s really important to bring those aspects back into the community.”
Reyes wants people to remember the contributions the Latino community has made to the formation of L.A., Reyes said.
“We are living on land that used to be Mexico, so acknowledging that is super important for everyone,” Reyes said. “Los Angeles is such a deeply Latina community, and sometimes we get a little lost in it when we’re in Malibu.”
Looking to the Future
Both Cividanes and Banda said they are happy with the steps Pepperdine has taken to be supportive of the Latinx community. Recently, Pepperdine welcomed the first Latina sorority onto its campus Banda said. They have begun recruiting and hope to build up the chapter more this school year. Banda is the president. The name cannot be said at this time since the sorority has to approve all things that use their name Banda said.
“We were hoping to have a safe place for other people,” Banda said. “We like to say we’re ‘Latina-based, but all embrace.'”
Banda said it is LSA’s hope to begin doing more outreach in the L.A. community. They hope to eventually incorporate a philanthropy event and take small steps to connect outside of Pepperdine in the coming year.
Besides the new organizations and attempts at community outreach, many students said they are looking forward to future celebrations.
Dia de los Muertos takes place Nov. 1, only a few weeks after Hispanic Heritage Month ends. Professor Cividanes said she is excited about how Dia de los Muertos celebrations allow students to invite their families and friends to take part in celebrations.
Borrilez said he is also looking forward to future celebrations like Dia de los Muertos to help bring more awareness.
“I feel that’s [Dia de los Muertos] a good chance for people who are still curious about the culture to check it out,” Borrilez said.
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Email Brooke Derrington: katherine.derrington@pepperdine.edu
