SOL Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month with 5 Events

The Student Organization of Latinx (SOL) has been celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 by hosting events on Fridays during the lunch hour (12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.) at the Zuberano Lawn for students to experience the Hispanic culture and heritage. 

The directive assistant of SOL, Erika Villalobos, said it was important for the club to share the hispanic heritage on the Chaminade campus.

“Just like any culture, it’s important to branch out and know about other cultures and learn new things,” said Villalobos, a third-year Forensic Science major at CUH. “Also, because every culture has faced their own kind of struggles, but this month since it’s dedicated to hispanics, I feel like it can get our struggles out specifically also to embrace our culture.” 

Every year, from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, Hispanic Heritage Month honors and celebrates the various contributions, different cultures, and long histories of the American Latino community. Under President Lyndon B. Johnson, Hispanic Heritage Month began in 1968 as “Hispanic Heritage Week,” but it was subsequently expanded to a month during President Ronald Reagan’s term in 1988. 

These events bring the university’s community together to experience a different culture in the form of food, beverage, and games. 

Third-year Environmental and Interior Design major at CUH and SOL President, Montserrat Lanfranco, said the club kicked off Hispanic Heritage Month by handing out Jarritos, a brand of soft drink from Mexico, to students, faculty, and staff on campus. The second event was cancelled due to the catering company not being able to deliver. The third event the club served chicken and asada tacos while playing lotería, often referred to as Mexican bingo, and gave prizes. During the fourth event, the club gave out horchata, a popular Mexican drink that is often described as a sweet rice milk beverage. Finally, the fifth event, which will be hosted on Oct. 15, the club will be setting up pots and jars for student, faculty, and staff members to paint. Lanfranco said that the last event is meant to “emphasize your voice in art” because it’s important to share your voice. 

This is the first time SOL is hosting events like this for Hispanic Heritage Month, so it’s a big deal for the club, Lanfranco said. SOL hopes to collaborate with another club in the month of November for Día de los Muertos (the Day of the Dead), but that’s still in the works. The club will be collaborating with the advising office in November for the First Generation Celebration hosted by Chaminade University.

The university welcomed SOL during the 2020 spring semester. The club hopes to raise awareness about the social issues within the Spanish, Latin community and bring the community together in Hawaii. 

The Hispanic Heritage Month events are intended to be a fun-filled atmosphere for participants to take a break after the school week and enjoy the free cultural foods, music, and friends.

“I like supporting my friends since they’re running this whole event, also I think it’s just a good way to relax after classes and just to have a little fun,” said Peyton Oshiro, a third-year Business Administration major at CUH. 

For more information about events at CUH, go to the events page on the website. For more information regarding SOL, visit the SOL Instagram page @sol_cuh or email the club at [email protected].