Emily Douin Contributing Writer
UMF’s Multicultural Club is in search of new members as the semester begins to promote diversity and acceptance on campus. The club “embraces people from all over the world, no matter where you come from, you are supported and you are embraced,” president Moninda Marube said with pride.
Currently there are eleven members, three of whom are executive board members. They can be found at their monthly meetings discussing future events, both for the club and also for opportunities for the university to come together. “It embraces people from all over the world, no matter where you come from you are supported and you are embraced,” Marube said.
The club believes that the support that they give one another and also other students of the university, give people a sense of belonging. When new students come from different states and different parts of the world, the club makes the effort to make them feel welcome, accepted and wanted.
The group is in search of new members due to the “desperate need for diversity on this campus.” Cha Cha Jerome said (the club treasurer). “Anyone and everyone should feel welcome here,” Jerome said. They take pride in their ability to set differences aside and be there for one another as a collective unit.
The club has on and off-site events which are available to both members and non-members of the club. Some of these include functions like Pop of Culture Dance, henna art nights and dinners. Off-site events include Rockland trips, conferences, movie viewings, and festivals. The club’s events are not specific to one culture as they make the effort to embrace all of the cultures which are present in the club and that members are interested in learning about.
The club recently attended African Night in Portland which allowed viewers to explore African culture through poetry, food, music and fashion. The Multi-Cultural Club supported one of its own members, Shukri Abdirahman, who performed her poetry. They only a small section of the crowd, with many people from all over the U.S. and Canada in attendance.
They’re planning a trip to the Portland stage in March to see “Native Gardens,” about a mixed racial couple and their journey, followed by a dinner for the entire group.
The club has grown tremendously in the past two years, having more than tripled in size. But that isn’t enough as the club is looking to grow even larger to help spread diversity on campus. “The more people we have in the club, hopefully, we can create more activists, and more meaningful events on campus,” Abdirahman said.
The campus is looking to double their numbers in the upcoming years, which will allow them to have bigger events that will provide the university with more diversity awareness allowing people to feel more accepted and welcome. The club hopes that their events can bring the campus community together and become more accepting of each other.