On March 21 Mi Familia hosted SOMOS in the new Talley Student Center as part of Talley Welcome Week. For 11 years, SOMOS has been a part of the annual events organized by Mi Famila, the largest Latino organization at N.C. State. With more than 200 people in attendance, this event was able to reach a diverse audience with the purpose of showcasing the Latino culture through music, dance and other forms of art.
This year the theme was SOMOS La Nueva Era which means We Are the New Era. This theme was prevalent in many of the acts which included both modern and traditional elements. The show started with a few words from the president of Mi Familia, Cristal Vivanco. Nelson Santiago, the new director of Hispanic StudentAffairs for the office of Multicultural Student Affairs, followed with a speech about his experience with the Latino students on campus and what he hopes to achieve as director.
Danza Azteca was the first performance and it was a group of young girls who demonstrated the traditional dances of the natives in Mexico. Dances with Wolves, the N.C. State Ballroom dance team, followed with a spectacular performance to samba, rumba and cha cha, which are rhythms heard throughout Latin America. Sube Ritmo, the Latin dance team on campus danced to common Latin rhythms including salsa, merengue and bachata. Their performance had an unexpected modern twist when they danced to a techno beat.
Julian Martinez played two bachata songs on the piano. Jorge Santiago played original songs on his guitar. Ayanis Lindo, Angie Rodriguez y Leah Anderson sang “Aqui Estoy Yo” by Luis Fonsi.
Herrison Chicas, a graduate from UNC and a spoken word artist, shared his poems of love, life, death and the plight of people who entered the United States illegally. The brothers of Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity Incorporated and the sisters of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority Incorporated performed Greek Salutes, which are a series of movements and words that tell a story about the different histories of the organizations.
Cristal Vivanco, a junior studying international studies and business, made an exciting new addition to the traditional SOMOS lineup: a fashion show featuring designs created by a diverse group of N.C. State students.
“I think, personally, I had a lot of fun creating the fashion show, that was my main focus. The rest was the performers and it was something that I really, really wanted to do. I think in the end, everyone enjoyed it and really liked it,” Vivanco said.
Some of the traditional outfits featured in the fashion show include a china poblana dress, Cuban guayabera, Cuban dress, huasa china dress, and a Chilean chamanto. Sidney Gaston, an involved member of Mi Familia since her freshman year, said “the fashion show stood out to me because I have never seen it in SOMOS or any Hispanic event before. I also noticed some outfits were inspired by Latin American countries and the fact that they are created by N.C. State students that are not necessarily Hispanic gives me the impression that our reach exceeds the Hispanic community and that is exciting.”
SOMOS La Nueva Era did an amazing job of demonstrating how diverse the Latino organizations on our campus and our community are. It also shows how many different people can come together to put on a great show and shed light on the rich Latino culture. This event is a reflection of how our generation, which is constantly battling with identity crisis, can blend our traditions with modern elements to create a new culture and way of life that we can all relate to.
