Global Engagement Night (Campus)
Enarson Classroom Building Room 160
6:00 – 7:00 PM
I attended the Global Engagement Night on Tuesday this week with my roommate. Before we started we even all participated in an ice breaker game of Simon Says, fighting for the reward of some candy! After returning inside we settled into small groups and listened to a excellent presentation about Columbus Day as well as Indigenous Peoples Day. We discussed the history of the holiday as well as were well informed on some of the rich history and culture present in Indigenous Peoples all over the world. This event related to International Affairs in general because we talked about different perceptions of Columbus Day before opening up to being informed about international Indigenous cultures and their past. Especially discussing the oppression and long lasting effects of the Native people especially in America really is like. The event left me extremely curious to learn more about the Indigenous culture in our own country and see what action is being taken to rectify past mistakes and terrible discriminations against these people. The event truly impacted me and how I looked at things regarding our nation’s past and how we handle past wronging. I learned a lot about a culture I had never really delved into in U.S History class, and caught myself being blind to cultural appropriation against Native people that still occurs today in the form of Halloween costumes and Sports Teams. This definitely intersects with my personal goals of being more aware of whats going on around me outside my ethnic background and heritage. I love learning about other cultures and I believe regardless of what walk of life you’re on it’s so important to know and understand as much history as possible in order to learn from it and move forward in a more positive way.