Latinx Heritage Month — Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 — will feature more than a dozen events across Colorado State University and the greater Fort Collins community, with talks from acclaimed authors as well as unique cultural events.
Events include keynote talks by writer and activist Julissa Arce on Sept. 20 and award-winning poet Sonia Guiñansaca on Oct. 5. The monthlong celebration kicks off on Sept. 15 on the Lory Student Center Plaza with music from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Later in the day, California’s DJ Von Kiss will be performing in the LSC’s Sutherland Garden from 5:30-7 p.m.
Latinx Heritage Month organizers from El Centro — CSU’s diversity office for the Latinx community — said they can feel the excitement among students building for this year’s celebration.
“Last year, we were in this hybrid space because of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said El Centro Director Dora Frias. “This year feels like we’re fully back, and the students are hyped. We’re really excited about the collection of events we have throughout the month.”
During the month, there also will be opportunities to celebrate food and culture, ranging from a sampling of Latin American cuisine at Braiden Dining Hall on Sept. 22 to a virtual cooking workshop on Sept. 27.
El Centro Assistant Director Michelle Cadena explained this year’s Latinx Heritage Month is a little different, as they are collaborating with groups in Fort Collins for a more community-centric approach.
On Sept. 18, El Centro will be promoting the Celebración Communitaria (Community Celebration) at the Northside Aztlan Community Center in Fort Collins from 2-6 p.m. The event — in collaboration with the Poudre Libraries, City of Fort Collins and Larimer County — celebrates the cultures, contributions, stories and accomplishments of Latinx and Hispanic people who have helped shaped the United States.
“We understand that the community isn’t just here at CSU, it extends into the city as well,” Cadena said. “We also want to make sure our students know what’s also happening in Fort Collins and what resources are available to them.”
Julissa Arce on Sept. 20
Arce, a leading voice in the fights for social justice, immigrant rights and education equality, is the best-selling author of My (Underground) American Dream (Entre Las Sombras del Sueño Americano) and Someone Like Me (Alguien Como Yo).
Arce is a contributor for TIME, Buzzfeed News, Crooked Media, CNBC, and one of the hosts of Crooked Conversations. Her book, My Underground American Dream, is currently being developed as a television series with producer and actor America Ferrera.
Her talk is in collaboration with RamEvents and the Women and Gender Advocacy Center at CSU.
Sonia Guiñansaca on Oct. 5
Guiñansaca is an international award-winning queer migrant poet, cultural organizer and social justice activist. They emerged as a national leader in the migrant artistic and political communities, where they coordinated and participated in groundbreaking civil disobedience actions.
Guiñansaca has performed at the Met, the NYC Public Theater and Lehmann Maupin Gallery, and has been featured on PEN American, Interview Magazine, Ms.Magazine, Teen Vogue, Diva Magazine UK, CNN, NBC and PBS, to name a few.
Their talk is part of the annual Borderlands Speaker Series at CSU, a collaboration between the Pride Resource Center, El Centro and RamEvents to honor the overlap of Latinx Heritage Month and LGBTQ+ History Month.
Calendar
For the latest information on Latinx Heritage Month, visit elcentro.colostate.edu.
