Concordia celebrated its annual Unity Week from Sept. 16-20, with events like the Unity Week Kickoff, Cultural Club Showcase, Wings Wednesday and a special Unity Talk in Friday’s chapel by Ms. Mo. This week helped to highlight the importance of unity on campus and beyond. 

The Unity Week Kickoff, held at the Unity Center on the top floor of the Schroeder Library, was a great success with students and staff connecting with one another over free t-shirts, tacos from Taco Man and raffles. Desirea Melcher, President of the Nuestra Voz cultural club and junior studying English-secondary education, and Indyah Alex, President of the Black Student Union (BSU) and a senior studying Sports Business, both said this was their favorite event of the week. Alex particularly enjoyed “decorating the Unity Center for Hispanic Heritage Month.” 

Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated every year from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, and means a lot to Melcher. “It's a month where I see not just my culture but all other Hispanic, Latino and Indigenous cultures represented and seen for what they are: beautiful and unique,” she said. “I love seeing different cultures represented in multiple ways, in stores, decorations, and, of course, in delicious cultural foods.” 

Another Unity Week event, Wings Wednesday, was held in the Uppers Lawn and Lambda Courtyard, and also had a big turnout of students. Attendees enjoyed chicken wings and learned how they are one piece of a big “Diversity Puzzle.” Students learned this through an activity in which they drew pictures to portray how they were a part of the “Diversity Puzzle.” This helped students to visually understand how different people and cultures can come together to complete one big united picture and emphasized the week’s theme. 

To different cultural clubs on campus, “unity” can mean a lot of different things. Alex said, “To BSU, unity means coming together to support and celebrate each other, no matter our differences. It’s about being stronger when we stand as one, both as Black students and as part of the whole campus community. Unity means creating a space where everyone feels safe and heard. It’s also about standing up for fairness and equality, making sure everyone feels like they belong and can succeed.”  

Alex said that the BSU club helps to encourage unity on campus by “creating spaces where students from different backgrounds can come together to learn from each other. We give students a chance to talk about culture, history and identity, which helps bring people closer. BSU also raises awareness about the challenges that Black students face and works to make everyone feel welcome. It’s not just about celebrating our own culture but also encouraging others to understand and respect it, making the campus more open and accepting.”

Unity to Melcher and her club means “bringing students together and helping give them a voice. Nuestra Voz creates a community for all Hispanic students; it's a safe place for us to connect, share, bond and form relationships. We encourage everyone's voice to be shared and heard, along with encouraging the many Hispanic, Chicano, Latino and Indigenous cultures to be taught and learned.” 

A future event to look forward to from the Nuestra Voz club is El Carnival, Melcher’s favorite event that they put on. Last year they “represented Salvadorian culture through pupusas, Guatemalan through sweet bread, Mexican through "build your own tacos" with carnitas, Cuban through potato balls, and more sweet treats from Portos and more.” 

Nuestra Voz helps to unite Concordia because “we strive to be a club that is open to hearing everyone's voice. We welcome all, even non-Hispanic students. We believe it is important to showcase all Hispanic cultures and try our best to achieve that through our events,” Melcher explained. 

Unity Week ended with a special talk by Ms. Mo during Friday’s chapel. Alex said, “She talked about what unity really means and how important it is for us to come together, despite our differences. Her message was powerful because it reminded us that unity isn't just about being the same; it's about respecting and supporting each other, no matter where we come from.” 

Tags: community

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