Fresno City College held the opening ceremony for Asian American Month in the college theater on Monday.  The celebrations included performances by FCC students — South Indian and Laotian dances, Asian dialogues, martial arts and comedy skits.  

“It’s a great opportunity for everyone to learn about a different culture. They [FCC students] get to experience the history, food, and art,” said Janice Wong, College Center assistant.

Maile Glover, college center assistant, agrees, “Asian American month is about experiencing, sharing, and learning new elements of culture. It’s really opening the eyes of students to a new prospective in the college community.”  

Glover said it is very important that FCC students and staff participate in the celebration of this month because of what the culture offers, especially to residents of the central valley of California.

“Look at the diversity that we have in Fresno and about how many different languages are spoken here. On a college campus, we should experience diversity on every level. I think Asian American month, along with other culture months, are important for students to experience, learn about and walk away with a different perspective,” Glover said.

Glover said she has lots of expectations for the Asian Month celebrations. “We really hope to get a wide diverse array of different activities, events, and some panel discussions as well as performances. Along with our events, comes the historical aspect, giving students who are not aware of the culture an opportunity to learn something new.”

Wong said she is looking forward to Thursday’s Asian Fest which will be packed with lots of different performances. About 2,000 people are expected to participate in Thursday’s events. “There will be something for everyone,” Wong said.

Jimmy Hoo, vice president of the Asian American club on campus said he was pleased to be part of the group that is organizing this event. “We have to show that we’re involved in the Asian community and show our pride.”