MultiCultural Center hosts lecture on Cameroon

The MultiCultural Center (MCC) is continuing its Race Matters Series with a lecture on Cameroon’s literature, culture and more on Thursday, April 20 from 2-4 p.m. at the MCC theater. 

The event will feature five guest lecturers, including Institute of International Education’s Scholar Rescue Fund fellow Elisabeth Ayuk-Etang, UC Irvine visiting scholar Glida Forbang, UCI doctoral candidate Glaydah Namukasa, Tuskegee University professor William Ndi and UC Berkeley associate professor Aloysius Ngalim. 

The event is co-sponsored by the Walter H. Capps Center, UC Santa Barbara Global Engagement and the Orfalea Center for Global & International Studies. 

American Indian and Indigenous Cultural Resource Center leads cultural meditation

The American Indian and Indigenous Cultural Resource Center (AIICRC) is collaborating with UCSB Health & Wellness to bring a cultural take on mindfulness and meditation in a workshop on Thursday, April 20 from 3-3:30 p.m. at the AIICRC in the Student Resource Building. 

No prior experience, identity or materials are required for the event. 

The AIICRC exists to serve American Indian and Indigenous students at UCSB through various programming and resources. 

Women’s Center hosts feminist book club for spring quarter 

The Women’s Center is hosting a feminist book club on Thursdays from 4-5 p.m. in the Women’s Center Lounge this quarter, starting Thursday, April 20. The meetings will be held during weeks three, five, seven and nine.

“Join us this Spring in reading Sara Ahmed’s ‘Living a Feminist Life’ and join other budding feminists in discussions about including feminism into every aspect of your life,” the Shoreline description read. 

The first 10 participants of the event will receive a free copy of Ahmed’s book. 

The Women’s Center is UCSB’s primary organization dedicated to providing education on women’s issues, feminism, healthy masculinities, gender and social equity. 

QT Graduate Student Union hosts drag night for graduate students 

The Queer & Trans Graduate Student Union (QTGSU) is collaborating with the Graduate Student Association to host a drag night for graduate students on Thursday, April 20 from 6-9 p.m. at the Mosher Alumni House. 

The event will feature Aria & Linda and the Drag Parasites. Admission is free, but $5 donations are recommended, and all proceeds from the event will be donated to the QTGSU gender-affirming care fund. 

QTGSU provides support, events and resources for LGBTQIA+ graduate students at UCSB through fiscal grants, care packages and more. 

Middle Eastern, North African, South Asian Resource Center presents annual Bazaar 

The Middle Eastern, North African, South Asian Resource Center is celebrating the annual Bazaar on Friday, April 21 fr  om 6-8 p.m. at the MCC lounge. 

The event is in collaboration with various organizations on campus and will feature artwork displays, food self-care supplies and more. 

“We especially invite YOU to celebrate the Arab community as we highlight their rich and prevalent culture during April as it is National Arab American Heritage Month,” the Shoreline description read. 

A.S. Environmental Affairs Board hosts Isla Vista Earth Day Festival 

The Associated Students Environmental Affairs Board is hosting its annual Isla Vista Earth Day Festival on Saturday, April 22, from 1-5 p.m. at Anisq’oyo’ Park. 

The outdoor event will feature live music, a free clothing swap, plant potting activities, tie dye, stands run by student and community organizations, artwork displays, food and more. 

The board promotes environmental, social, political and economic sustainability through advocacy work and event programming. 

RCSGD celebrates Trans Week of Visibility

The Resource Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity (RCSGD) is holding a week-long schedule of events in honor of Trans Week of Visibility from Monday, April 24 to Friday, April 28. 

The week will begin with a workshop on transgender sex education on Monday, April 24 from 4-5 p.m. on Zoom. The event will address sexual health, body and genital care and other topics relevant to transgender, nonbinary and/or gender-nonconforming individuals. 

Tuesday will feature a community panel of staff, faculty and other non-students on transgender healthcare on Zoom. There will also be a workshop on legal name and gender changes on Tuesday, April 25 from 3-4 p.m. in the MCC lounge, discussing how to fill out appropriate paperwork, applying to fiscal grants and fee waivers and more. 

There is additional event programming by RCSGD in honor of the observance. 

Walter H. Capps Center hosts guest lecture on American refugee politics, Hmong religion

The Walter H. Capps Center is hosting University of Michigan assistant professor Melissa Borja in a lecture titled, “Follow the New Way: How American Refugee Policies Changed Hmong Religious Life.” The event will take place on Tuesday, April 25 from 5-6:30 p.m. at the MCC Lounge. 

“Borja shows how Hmong refugees from Laos found creative ways to maintain their religious traditions after resettlement, even as Christian organizations deputized by the government were granted an outsized influence on their new lives,” the Shoreline description read. 

Walter H. Capps Center presents two events on Asian American activism 

The Walter H. Capps Center is hosting two events about Asian American activism on Wednesday, April 26 at the MCC theater. 

The first event features a panel of UCSB faculty and staff — all of whom are Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) activists — to discuss AAPI activism history and movements. This discussion will take place from 3-4:30 p.m. The panel includes UCSB Asian American studies professor Diane Fujino, UCSB sociology doctoral candidate Naomi Joseph, among others. 

The second event — from 5-6:30 p.m. and titled “Challenging Hate: How to stop anti-AAPI Violence and Bias” — will feature Stop AAPI Hate Co-Founder and AAPI Equity Alliance Executive Director Manjusha Kulkarni. 

“Manjusha Kulkarni will discuss how Stop AAPI Hate is addressing anti-Asian hate through civil rights enforcement, education equity, community-based safety, and building a movement against systemic racism,” the Shoreline description read. 

A version of this article appeared on p. 2 of the April 20, 2023, print edition of the Daily Nexus.

Asumi Shuda

Asumi Shuda (they/them) is the Lead News Editor for the 2023-24 school year. Previously, Shuda was the Deputy News Editor, Community Outreach News Editor for the 2022-23 school year and the 2021-22 school year and an Assistant News Editor during the 2020-21 school year. They can be reached at asumishuda@dailynexus.com or news@dailynexus.com.