Duke responsible for cultural awareness

Did you know it was Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15? Well, neither did most of Duke's campus. As part of Mi Gente, Duke's Latino Student Association, we promote events and programming for this month. Cultural groups, however, should not be solely responsible for creating general campus awareness about a month such as this.

We would like to ask why there is no Duke-wide institutional recognition or awareness of this month. Most of us are aware of Black History Month and there are programming and events to support that, perhaps not as much as there should be. But Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month seems to be an afterthought or something that does not get recognized. This is not written to pit one culture's history against another's. This is written because we share a same root: a lack of awareness. If there was a yearlong awareness of black history or Latino history and heritage, these months would be unnecessary. The fact that these months exist in the first place highlights the lack of awareness and the need for a focus on these cultures in mainstream society.

We believe that it is valuable to use this month as an official time when our voice is heard. It's the official national time to recognize our heritage, history and issues, but this month of engagement and learning unfolds marginally at Duke. Who are we, as Latinos, to convince other students to attend and care about our events? If the Latino students are the only ones attending events to celebrate their heritage, it defeats the purpose. This does a disservice to Duke students, as the campus can benefit greatly from increased awareness of Latino culture and issues.

Hispanic Heritage Month was established by President Ronald Reagan in 1968 by an act of Congress as a week-long period and then was expanded to a 31-day period in 1988. This shows how the month is part of our nation's institutional history, which sharply contrasts to the situation here at Duke. Mi Gente celebrates it as Latino Heritage Month (LHM), but Duke as an institution has not played any part in recognizing or taking ownership of this month. This burden of celebrating and promoting this month rests mostly with the cultural organization and the Latino/a Studies Initiative. What message does this send? We believe that it shows that diversity at Duke is more a show than reality.

The University celebrates and promotes how multicultural and diverse it is, but if these minorities feel that Duke's official programming does not include them, then Duke has been inadequate. Part of creating a diverse student body is extending an institutional welcome and promoting an inclusive official environment. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a wonderful example of this. The University recognizes a national holiday and promotes widespread official programming. You perhaps see administrators and professors taking part in discussions and important talks and dialogues. It feels like MLK Day is part of Duke; it's thought of as a Duke thing rather than a Black Student Alliance thing. It sends the message that the University cares and that our community should care about that day and what it means for our nation.

Although we recognize that Latino Heritage Month and other heritage months are not exactly analogous to MLK day, we think the similarities are enough that our point is valid. Many different parts of the University, including departments, organizations and students, come together to plan and organize the events for MLK day. There seems to be an official participation on the part of the University. There is no comparable broad participation in Latino Heritage Month, however. This is an issue of campus awareness and cultural competence.

An appropriate step the University could take would be to earmark financial funds for an annual major Latino Heritage Month speaker that would appeal to the Duke mainstream. Many times their honorariums are beyond Mi Gente's financial reach, and if the University made a commitment to provide consistent funding, we could work with the Union to bring an annual major speaker for Latino Heritage Month. This would help legitimize Latino issues on campus and increase widespread participation and engagement in Latino Heritage Month.

We, as a student organization, are limited by time, resources and reach. We believe that Duke as an institution is responsible for, and should claim ownership for instilling cultural awareness in its students and to this end, should in some official capacity recognize and participate in Latino Heritage Month.