Students get a taste of Dominican culture
Amara Enyia
The Daily Illini
Some students from the Dominican Republic at La Casa Monday night said if you ask an American to name something about the Dominican Republic, the only thing that comes to mind is baseball player Sammy Sosa. Monday night, the Caribbean Latino Students Association tried to change that.
The group held a “Taste of the Dominican Republic” at La Casa Cultural Latina to introduce Dominican culture. La Casa co-sponsored the event.
Lively music played in the background as Jennifer Guilamo, president of the Caribbean Latino Students Association, stood over a pot of food stirring. Around La Casa’s steaming kitchen, other members of the organization rushed from one pot to another draining beans, washing dishes, and slicing plantains, which are similar to bananas. The kitchen bustled with excitement as the group, established just last semester, prepared food for its first big event.
The event opened with a game of Dominican trivia in which students who attended competed for points. The object was to answer as many trivia questions about the Dominican Republic as possible. It also included foods from all over the Caribbean, including habichuelas con dulce, a drink made of sweetened kidney beans, bright yellow fried plantains called tostones, and rice.
One of the main reasons for the establishment of CLSA is to create unity between different Latino groups, Guilamo said.
“There is a lot of conflict between Dominicans and Puerto Ricans and when I came here I really felt it,” Guilamo said. She added the reasons for the conflict would take hours to discuss. But Guilamo, who is half Puerto Rican and half Dominican, said despite conflicts between the two groups, they both share very similar cultures. One of the organization’s primary goals is to educate the campus community and others in the Latino community about their culture.
“A lot of people don’t even know what Dominicans are,” she said.
Although Eric Lopez, freshman in LAS, didn’t literally don an apron for the evening’s food preparation, he said he was at La Casa six hours early chopping, slicing and dicing food for the evening’s festivities. Lopez’s family is from Puerto Rico. He said he joined CLSA because the organization most closely fits his interests and he had similar interests with organization members.
“CLSA allows (students of Caribbean Latino heritage) to share our culture and heritage with everyone,” he said.
Lopez also said students can have a better understanding of the Caribbean Latino culture through events like the “Taste of the Dominican Republic.”
Ashley Llorens, graduate student, said he attends events at La Casa frequently and especially wanted to attend the Taste. Although he is not Latino, he said any organization that encourages cultural awareness is an asset to the University.
“Experiencing different cultures has been one of the best things for me at this University,” he said.
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