Festival celebrates culture, diversity

Chris Richards Arizona Daily Wildcat Chandra Savage (right) an RA at Arizona-Sonora, explains the significance of the Hindu holiday Diwali to other students yesterday. The occasion was a holiday cultural festival, which was held at the Park Student Union, and featured food, music and displays from a variety of religions.

Julie McCrea, a residence life area coordinator, said the two-day cultural celebration was intended to generate interest in other cultures and, she hopes, respect.

"Doing this during this time of the year is a non-threatening way to bring about diversity," she said.

McCrea said about 280 people visited the Holiday Fest on Tuesday and Wednesday night, adding she has hosted the UA celebrations for four years.

Festival visitors were welcomed with Hanukkah sufganiot, or doughnut holes, traditional grandma-style Christmas cookies for the well-known Christian holiday and fruit for Kwanzaa, an African American holiday.

In fact, Alyson English, a residence assistant who helped put together the Kwanzaa display, said the word itself comes from a Swahili phrase meaning "first fruits."

"I'm just learning about this, too, (Kwanzaa) is mainly about the seven basic principals of African culture," said English, a psychology sophomore.

Brian Akins, an elementary education junior, said he appreciates a celebration like this because it introduces a different point of view and subjects that may not have been in the public consciousness in the past.

"I learned about (Kwanzaa), and I don't see why more people don't do the same, it's a positive holiday," he said.

The Chinese New Year was also on display.

Visitors learned about the 12 animals that make up the Chinese Zodiac. A different animal renews the 12-year cycle every year.

The lure of hot cider attracted guests to a display outlining pagan celebrations of the Winter Solstice and exotic fruits and nuts lured party-goers to exhibition featuring information about the Hindu holiday, Diwali.

While pausing from time to time to offer guests candied dates, Saad Nasim explained the Muslim holiday Ramadan.

He said the holiday is the entire last month of the Muslim calendar, which is based on the lunar year.

"During Ramadan, Muslims fast from sun up to sun down," Nasim said. "A lot of people think that it's only about fasting, but there's other things going on."

Finance sophomore Habib Mohamed said there are special prayers intended for the holiday, like the chanting of "there is no God."

The prayer, Mohamed said, has nothing to do with denouncing any deity from other religions. It is intended to remind Muslims that their own God should not be represented by or associated with any icons or symbols, he said.

"The prayer means that nobody can associate God with a figure," he said.

Kevin Velasquez, a health and human services freshman, took in the festival with some of his friends Wednesday.

"It's cool," he said.

"I didn't realize there were so many holidays around Christmas time."