By Eric Preisler
Production Manager
Three events were tabled at this week’s Student Finance Board meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 1.
Thanksgiving Remix, proposed by the Black Student Union, was tabled first. The event would be in the Brower Student Center on Nov. 18 from 8 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.
The event’s purpose would be to highlight diversity on campus by allowing students to experience the different foods and traditions of various cultures, according to the event’s proposal packet.
“What might be on your Thanksgiving dinner table may not necessarily be on someone else’s Thanksgiving dinner table,” said Gayle Mayani, a junior international studies and marketing double major and the treasurer of BSU. “We wanted to show a mix of how people incorporate their ethnic identity with their national identity.”
Thanksgiving Remix would bring together cultural organizations that do not usually co-sponsor events together, according to the event’s proposal packet.
If passed, this event would be co-sponsored by several multicultural groups including the Indian Student Association, the Spanish Club and the Union Latina.
ISA’s Diwali Dinner, which was proposed to be held on Nov. 17 from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. in the Business Building lounge, was also tabled.
The event would allow students to celebrate Diwali with food and decorations while spending time with friends. There would also be games such as Jeopardy for ISA students and the campus community to partake in, according to the event’s proposal packet.
Jasmine Mahajan, a sophomore biology major and the treasurer of ISA, said that how people celebrate Diwali is similar to how people celebrate Thanksgiving. Families spend time cooking together, and there are a lot of different foods and decorations involved in the celebration.
Women in Leadership and Learning’s event, which would include guest speaker Vandana Shiva, was also tabled. The event was proposed to be held on April 12, at 5 p.m. in Mayo Concert Hall.
Shiva is educated in quantum physics and is involved in environmental research. She founded the Research Foundation for Science Technology in 1982 and Navdanya, an organization that protects biodiversity, according to the event’s proposal packet.
“She is an Indian scientist and also an ecofeminist,” said Abigail Moor, vice executive chair of WILL and a junior special education and women’s, gender and sexuality studies double major. “She is world-renowned in her field.”
Shiva’s appearance would tie in with women’s history month and the College’s theme, “Who We Are,” according to the event’s proposal packet.
SFB advised WILL to look for ways to prioritize seats at the event for students, change the timing of the event so it would not conflict with students’ schedules and potentially include fees for non-students.
Colleges Against Cancer was fully funded $789 for the Great American Smokeout, which will be held on Nov. 17 from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Green Lawn.
There will be an advocacy table at the event to inform students about the dangers of smoking, how to quit the habit, and ways to get help in addition to the festive hamburgers and hotdogs. Students can also make pledges to stop or decrease smoking habits at the event.
