Community Mixers: Dances, Drawings, and Discussions
Thank you to everyone who came to last week’s community mixer! Our second community event of the year was held over Zoom last Thursday and was more centered around Filipino-American History month. It started off late due to technical difficulties - and thus ran a little late as well - but it provided a nice space for folks to get to know the Filipino culture a little bit better. The first segment was led by Kai, this year’s PDT (Pagkakaisa Dance Troupe) coordinator. To celebrate Filipino-American history month, Kai has been posting about different traditional Filipino dances each day of October on the PDT Instagram (@pdt.ucsc) and on the Bayanihan Facebook page. Kai talked about a couple of the dances she had posted so far, but not before a pop quiz! An image of dance was shown, and the attendees were polled to see if they knew the answer.
This dance is the Binaylan! Check out PDT’s Instagram for more!
The next segment was led by Ella, this year’s Alay coordinator. At the beginning of the month, Ella posted “Alaytober” prompts on the Alay Instagram (@alay.ucsc) for folks to draw inspiration from. The prompts are all centered around Philippine mythology, including characters such as Bakunawa and Amihan. This portion of the event provided a space for folks to create art for the prompts. Six breakout rooms, one for each of the six prompts, divided the attendees for several minutes. After returning to the main room, those who were comfortable shared what they had created.
Graphic by Ella Apuntar | Submit to Alay!
The stated end time of the event had approached as the activity drew to a close. As a result, some attendees had to leave; however, others opted to stay for 20 minutes longer to discuss Filipino-American history. Folks took turns reading out sections from an article about the I-Hotel and its unfortunate downfall. The discussion that followed, while brief, brought up interesting points such as the similarities between injustices then and now. Then, after a few announcements, it came time for the Isang Bagsak! And with that, the second community event of the year was officially over. Let us know your thoughts on the event by filling out our feedback form!
Learn more about the aspects, their coordinators, and Bayanihan as a whole! Graphic by Michael Sim
These past two mixers have provided folks with a space to socialize and learn about Philippine and Filipino-American history. If you’re curious about Bayanihan and what we have to offer, however, come to Fall Reception! It will be held TOMORROW, October 22nd, at 7:30 over Zoom. At Fall Reception, you will be able to learn about Bayanihan’s aspects straight from the coordinators themselves! You can also meet returning aspect members and learn about their experiences, and interact with potential new aspect members. Joining an aspect is a great way to form connections and get more involved in Bayanihan. Don’t be shy, stop on by! We can’t wait to see everyone there!
Written by Samantha Sebandal