The Ole Miss International Festival saw Lamar Hall filled with snapshots of unique cultures that represented more than 30 countries on Saturday afternoon.
In addition to a stream of performances in the lobby, which included K-Pop and Bollywood dancing, students and professors set up booths for each country with informative posters, food samples, activities and cultural items to give those in attendance a better understanding of the countries represented.
“The purpose of the festival is to introduce everyone here in Mississippi to the different cultures,” said Neema Loy, an Ole Miss doctoral student who worked the booth for Tanzania.
Loy is also in charge of the growing Swahili department on campus. Swahili is her first language, and Loy pointed out the influence that it has had on her accent.
“If you don’t ever get the chance to travel to Tanzania, for example, or any of the other countries here, you have this opportunity to meet us, people from these places, and learn about our countries,” Loy said. “I think it’s good to show people how we live.”
Another student involved in the execution of this festival was Max Sotrop, a junior and Russian student in the Croft Institute for International Studies.
At the Russia booth, Sotrop gave out blini, Russian pancakes usually served with jam and condensed milk, and explained various items that are important in Russian culture, including “matryoshka” nesting dolls and samovar tea makers. “The festival appeals to apparently everybody,” Sotrop said. “I thought this place would be empty in the way back of Lamar, but tons of people showed up to learn about foreign cultures… and that’s pretty cool.”
Many professors from various foreign language departments attended the International Festival as well and shared more about the countries and languages they have dedicated their lives to studying.
French professors Marta Chevalier, Lorena Fonseca and Natacha Biyong manned France’s booth. They asked guests to answer trivia about the country before trying samplings of brie, bread, chocolate mousse and crepes, all of which are staples in the French diet.
“Sharing the different cultures of all of the countries presented on the Ole Miss campus, showing people the diversity we have here, that is the purpose of this festival,” Biyong said. “It’s just a fun time for people to mingle and talk to others with different backgrounds.”
In addition to the educational booths for each country, several campus organizations that work with international matters were present at the festival, as well.
Senior psychology major and member of UM Global Brigades Jessica Crump set up her booth to spread awareness for the mission group being organized on campus to help Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama.
“We take a holistic approach to going to other countries and empowering them to get on their feet,” Crump said. “We set up a team, send them with a specific brigade, being either medical (or) dental right now, and they work on that project to build the community up to where they can sustain themselves.”
Michaela Watson, president of Rebel Global Connections, organized her booth for a similar reason: to recruit more participants into her student organization.
“We basically visit elementary and middle schools doing fun activities, such as teaching the kids how to use chopsticks or (how) to say a couple words in a foreign language,” Watson said. “Our official goal is to alleviate cultural isolation for Mississippi children.”
While many continue to view Mississippi as a victim of cultural isolation, Ole Miss works to overcome this issue in the Oxford community by hosting inclusive, educational events such as the International Festival.
