KINGSTON, R.I. – Sept. 13, 2024 – The University of Rhode Island will celebrate Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, with a full and fun slate of events taking place across campus all month long.
The month-long celebration begins Tuesday, Sept. 17, with a reception (4 p.m. start) for ¡Celebración Hispana! on display now in the URI Welcome Center, Green Hall and the President’s house. The exhibit will be on display through December, presenting work in a variety of media by artists from the Caribbean, Central and South America. Ten of the represented artists live locally; ten sent their work to URI from abroad. The exhibit includes work by alumni AGonza, Angel Cajigas-Arbelo, and Raphael Diaz, and adjunct art faculty member Gabriel Rojas.
Musician Gian Carlo Buscaglia and poets Luis Peralta and Raff Diaz will perform at the reception at the Welcome Center. The President’s House and Green Hall will be open until 7 p.m. for guided tours of the artwork.
Longtime URI faculty member Susana de los Heros says that the second annual month of events recognizes the contributions of URI’s Spanish-speaking and heritage community members and their presence on the URI campus. She says she and many others appreciate the support from President Marc Parlange and others.
“URI has really embraced Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Month and the increasing presence of Hispanic and Latinx students here at URI,” she says. “These are inclusive events for all community members who are of Latinx heritage and also for those who are scholars in the field, and for many who appreciate and value diversity and want to learn more.”
“Latinx peoples and their cultural products and expertise in the arts and sciences have contributed to the United States for centuries,” she adds. “It is important to get public recognition of their success and uniqueness at URI, which welcomes an increasing number of students of Latinx/Hispanic heritage, many of whom are first in their family to go to college. Latinx and Hispanic people are an essential part of the multilayered tissue of the U.S. and the American nation: their accomplishments need to be acknowledged.”
A community effort across colleges and programs, URI’s inclusive month of celebration includes:
On Wednesday, Sept. 18, the Multicultural Student Services Center hosts Culture and Canvas in the Hardge Forum, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. (space limited for this event). This ongoing series lets students express their creativity while exploring culture together. This month’s installment features alumna muralist AGonza who was recently featured at this month’s PVD Fest.
Though her work appears on a large stage in the creative capital, AGonza, a Talent Development alumna, relishes staying close to her Rhody roots and remembers well what it felt like to start here as a Latinx student, navigating the spaces at URI and forging her own path. She feels it’s important to maintain connections with her alma mater.
“URI is a second home to many,” she says. “It is like family!”
Many students will be familiar with the celebratory piñata. On Sept. 23, a Movie & Piñata night combines the familiar favorite with showing of the film Los Pacientes Recurrentes in Swan Auditorium, a select local showing of this film festival favorite (5 to 8 p.m.).
The Office of Student Involvement will keep the celebration going at its Beats & Eats on Tuesday, Sept. 24, providing students with tacos and street corn from Macs Screaming Corn food truck, to accompany the fall voter registration drive on the Quadrangle, 12 to 4 p.m.
URI hosts a talk on refugee and human rights with the World Affairs Council of Rhode Island on Wednesday, Sept. 25 in Edwards Hall. Professor Skip Mark, named a 2024 emerging scholar in Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, is presenting “Global Leaders in Refugee Rights.” Mark is a co-director of CIRIGHTS, the world’s largest human rights dataset.
On Monday, Sept. 30, brush up on your bachata with lessons at the Multicultural Students Services Center, 1 to 1:50 p.m. Just show up! Pizza and drinks provided.
On Thursday, Oct. 3, URI welcomes Salvadoran poet and activist Javier Zamora for a conversation in the Higgins Welcome Center at 4 p.m. The discussion will also be livestreamed. Zamora’s award-winning 2023 memoir, Solito, explores his harrowing journey to the U.S. as an unaccompanied 9-year-old. The College of Arts and Sciences has purchased 100 copies of Solito to give to people interested in participating in a campus Big Read. Register to pick up a free copy. This is a centerpiece event in the Center for the Humanities’ yearlong series, “Sustaining Democracy,” and is open to the public.
On Monday, Oct. 7, the Queriendo Conexión (Wanting Connection) series returns to center conversations on traditional ideas related to masculinity, vulnerability, and relationships. The dialogue will be led by alumnus Kevin Pajaro-Mariñez ’15. This program takes place in the Multicultural Student Services Center, 5 to 8 p.m.
On Wednesday, Oct. 9, Latinx Heritage Month continues with A Taste of Culture, offering food, culture, and community celebration (4:30 to 6:30 p.m.). This event will feature URI’s multicultural student organization eXposure, providing lessons in bachata, merengue, and salsa, featuring URI alumni Bryan Solano- Reyes ’14 and Henry Rodriguez ’17. Food will be catered by alumna Helena Johns of Lena’s Litos.
On Thursday, Oct. 10, Latinx Storytelling takes place at the Gender and Sexuality Center, at 1 p.m. Latinx students and faculty will have ten minutes to present up to 20 slides with a commentary on each slide about their lives here in the U.S.
On Wednesday, Oct. 16, 5 to 6:15 p.m., Latinx Scientists in the College of the Environment and Life Sciences are hosting Cafecito in Beaupre 105.
On Thursday, Oct. 17, a Milk with Dignity Farmworker Activists presentation takes place in Swan Hall Auditorium, 12:30 to 1:45 p.m. Learn more here.
And on Wednesday, Oct. 30, URI wraps up October with a celebration of Día de los Muertos in the Multicultural Student Services Center, 5 to 7 p.m. The Multicultural Student Services Center invites all to join its annual celebration of the “Day of the Dead,” a joyful holiday that involves coming together to pay respects and honor family and friends who have passed away. Bring your ofrendas (offerings/memorabilia) to decorate the altar.
Organizers say they hope these events will bring the entire URI community together in celebration of a rich cultural heritage, represented by so many students, faculty and staff at URI and in the larger community of Rhode Island.
These events are sponsored by URI’s College of Arts and Sciences, Multicultural Student Services Center, Center for the Humanities, Department of Gender and Women’s Studies, Department of English, Honors Program, and the Office of the President. For more information on any of the items listed here, please visit the University of Rhode Island website or contact sheros@uri.edu.