At the first student-led Hispanic Heritage Month Assembly, ACHS showcased the vibrant cultures of its Hispanic community. Hosted on Wednesday, Oct. 8. in the King Street auditorium, the theme was “Honoring Our Past, Celebrating Our Present, and Inspiring Our Future.”
ACHS’s Latinos Unidos, Social Justice Club and International Academy Leadership Club organized the event. The goal was to represent and celebrate the culture of Hispanic students, who make up 42 percent of the ACHS population.
Carmen Canales, sponsor of the event, said “There are many challenges that students face, that families face, and so uniting us, showing our joy and our brilliance and sharing that with the Titan community is crucial to support who we are as Titans.”
The event was presented in both English and Spanish and took place over two class periods. In both periods four and six, the assembly began with an introduction including Hispanic history and its relevance within the Alexandria community. Following the presentation, a variety of staff and student performances carried the assembly.
A prominent source of cultural representation throughout the assembly was dance. Both Jessica Morales and Fatima Perez performed Mexican folklorian dances. Lizeth Diaz performed a Punta dance from Honduras and the Latinos Unidos dance committee performed Salsa, Merengue and Bachata dances.
Various genres of Hispanic music further showcased culture and talent. Seychelle Shamir and Jesse Hayne performed Que Bonito (How Beautiful) by Rosario Flores, with beautiful guitar and vocals, moving the audiences to sway their flashlights in response.
During the period 6 assembly, the ACHS Orchestra performed a Uruguayan tango and the ACHS choir sang “Yo Vido Cantando” (I Live to Sing), engaging the audience as they clapped along.
During the period 4 assembly, staff members Ana Bonilla, Jacquelyn Alvarez, Varita Mateos Bendinelli and Maria Meris performed Cumbia, a vibrant Colombian folk dance.
In between performances, the Social Justice club presented about activist leaders including Cesar Chaves, Dolores Huerta and Sara Mora, teaching the audience about activism and its importance in Hispanic history.
“If we are united, change is possible,” presented Social Justice club member David Lagos.
Staff Members Priscilla Parrilla-Jacobs and Emilia Odife performed a memorable part of the program. Using the Puerto Rican traditional “competencia de trovadores” (competition of the troubadours), as inspiration for their performance, they presented a poem of phrases from contributions by many ACHS classes. This created a unique combination of student ideas and thoughts read by Jacobs and Odife as a poem.
With the audience learning about Hispanic culture and tradition, education was a prominent goal of the organizers. They shared fun facts as well as descriptions and information about dances, foods, people and words from hispanic culture and communities. Seychelle Shamir and Ximena Juarez presented a slideshow highlighting influential female figures such as Frida Kahlo, Sonia Sotomayor, Kali Uchis, Karol G and others.
A flash mob dance celebrating Bad Bunny’s selection, to perform at this year’s Super Bowl, concluded the assembly. The performers invited all participants and audience members to dance along on stage.
Over 108 students participated as performers, ushers, or crew members for the performances. Leading up to the assembly, months of planning and coordination took place for all who participated.
“Preparation consisted of two rehearsals,” said Ximena Juarez, Vice President of Latinos Unidos. “We practiced a lot. We practiced with stage crew, we practiced with lights. It was a lot of work. We made presentations, we translated presentations. So it was definitely a lot to put together as Latinos Unidos, but I’m super glad we got it done. I really hope that everyone that was here enjoyed our first Hispanic Heritage assembly.”
According to the participants, the work paid off.
Canales said, “I think that it was very positive. It was part educational, part celebration, and part entertainment. This program was really generated by the students for the students, so everything that was put together was really what the students wanted and the adults were here to support and facilitate.” “Creativity is intelligence at play and that’s what this is a representation of.”
“We wanted to discover the culture of Hispanic people because there are a lot of Hispanic people here,” said Fatima Zahrao Haydadi and Yasmine Mazmar, the students interviewing participants as they entered the auditorium. “We like it! It’s pretty fun, the music and everything!”
Performer and organizer, Seychelle Shamir, also commented on it success, stating “I think it’s so fun, but most important to our community just because it’s crucial to represent our culture and to let the community know that we’ve made an impact, and that we deserve the same rights as much as they do. And it’s also important to share a culture that makes us happy, makes us feel at home, and maybe they could try it too.”
The students in the audience agree that the event was a valuable experience. Dylan Kaiman, a senior, stated, “This is a great idea. I love learning about different cultures.”
Sophomore Genevieve Hutchinson also enjoyed the assembly, stating “I thought the dances were really cool and I want one of the flowy dresses now!”
The event is important to the ACHS community and representation because it highlights a safe and welcoming community for Hispanic members of ACHS.
Juarez concluded that the event, to her, meant “to be able to share my culture and share my pride with the whole school. It means including everyone that may feel like they don’t belong.”
The audience, performers and crew all agree the assembly was a memorable and important experience. All the participants hope to celebrate again next year with another assembly.
