By Grace Tesoro Staff Writer
The Department of Languages, Literature, and Culture hosted the discussion-based “Noche en la Galería” event on Monday evening at the Lore Degenstein Art Gallery.
Students and local residents gathered to listen to a night filled with discussion on culture, Latin American countries and social activism.
Guided tours were given by Dr. Gregory Severyn’s 302-level Spanish class. The students presented their interpretations of the exhibition by Jerry Taliaferro titled, “Sons: Seeing the Modern African American Male”.
Severyn shared that his class had been working closely in connection to the exhibition in the art gallery for the semester.
According to Severyn, he wanted his students a chance to dive further into the critical analysis they had been doing in class and give them the opportunity to share their interpretations with members of the community.
“I wanted them to share their knowledge with the community. So why not bring people who may have not visited the art exhibit as well as students from all levels of Spanish together and kind of form a community around this idea of community which is what “Sons” is about,” Severyn said.
The guided tours given by students explored themes of racism, generational differences and social activism.
Presentations regarding past experiences in Spanish-speaking countries were also incorporated alongside the guided tours.
Senior Spanish and education major Matthew Gorman presented on his abroad trip to Costa Rica in the spring of 2019 and how the cultural immersion helped him improve his Spanish. Presenting entirely in Spanish, Gorman shared how living in the country and with a host family give him ample opportunity to speak the language.
“It was an experience for me to really learn and better my Spanish, I could talk for hours about my time there,” Gorman said.
Kara Eckert, a senior biology and Spanish major also presented on her experience in Mérida, Mexico during the spring of 2019.
“I had the opportunity to work in a botanical garden in Yucatán where we would work to harvest new plants. It made me realize that I wanted to continue my work with plants,” Eckert said.
Severyn strategically selected students who went to study abroad in Latin or Central America, to call attention to the successful programs that exist in these countries.
“So many of the representatives that come to campus talk about Spain. I wanted to broaden the horizon because the whole exhibit is about diversity,” Severyn said.
Representatives from Association of Latinx and American Students (ALAS) Emily Maria Lúa-Lúa and Taylor Banks also shared more about the organization and their emphasis on community building and the unification of Susquehanna students despite coming from various backgrounds.
“We work to emphasize the Three C’s: conversation, cultivation, community. We continuously need to be supportive of each other. The aspect of community is a work in progress and there is always something you can be doing for your neighbor,” Banks said.
“We are all oppressed in some way. Not one person is more oppressed than the other. With unity we can accomplish a lot,” Lúa-Lúa said.