Cultural Programs
Cultural Programs — Student Led Events
Cultural Programs are events planned, coordinated, and hosted by our wonderful team of student Cultural Programmers! From critical dialogue spaces where we discuss contemporary issues in our communities to fun & light-hearted crafting activities, each event speaks to one or more of our Center’s values of cultural empowerment, social justice, or community building. The topics or themes of the event are based on the interests of our current staff. Regardless of the topic, you’ll learn new things, have meaningful conversations, and connect with SJSU students from diverse backgrounds and experiences.
Sohba Collective
Sohba Collective is a discussion space to support students who have recently converted to Islam. At this one-of-a-kind event, students of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds got to break bread while sharing their story with one another.
Black Healing Space
At this event, our cultural programmer collaborated with the BLOC to offer a space for students to learn about racial trauma and discuss their experiences with it, and explore healthy ways to cope. SJSU CAPS counselor Dr. Jackie Rabouin also gave an inspiring talk about Black mental health, too! After the discussion, we walked to local barbershop Head Space to create an altar honoring victims of police violence while students shared beautiful spoken word poetry.
Bikini Bottom Exposed!
Did you know that many believe that the popular cartoon program Spongebob is based off nuclear testing in the Marshallese Islands? We didn't either until our Cultural Programmer educated us about it! They shared the history of nuclear testing in the Bikini Atoll and the devastating impact it had on the Marshallese people, drawing parallels to Spongebob throughout the presentation. We also learned about the resilience of the Marshallese people and how people support and advocate for them today. "Krabby Patties" were served!
Ni de Aqui, Ni de Alla
At this event, our Cultural Programmer led a thought provoking discussion on diaspora experiences in the Latinx community.
