Unity, Strength & Spirit: Celebrating our differences through the traditions of yesterday and today. The theme for the 16th Annual Asian Oklahoma Night, which took place Wednesday night in the Oklahoma Memorial Union Ballroom, reflected the diversity of Asian culture, which is being celebrated throughout the month of October.
Sponsored by area businesses and campus organizations, Asian Oklahoma Night was designed to heighten awareness of Asian culture and the diversity that resides within it.
"We really want to stress the fact that [Asian American Night] is not only targeted to an Asian audience," said Quincie Phan, biochemistry junior and last year's Asian American Student Association president. "We want to target all audiences and have them embrace our culture and all it has to offer."
In an attempt to foster a greater understanding of Asian culture, different organizations, including the Asian American Student Association, India Student Association and Society of Vietnamese Students, set up booths. The different groups encouraged any interested parties to further explore the Asian culture and handed out fliers and displayed cultural artifacts.
Katy Jordan, a pre-pharmacy junior, said the best way to understand new cultures is to step outside one's comfort zone.
"I think people just need to mingle more because I think sometimes we're afraid to," Jordan said.
Representing the unity aspect of the evening, the events began with the Lion Dance, a traditional New Year's performance. As two dragons bounced around the room, the teamwork of the performers was evident. The students, hidden under the cover of their furry presentations, had to work together to bring the dragons to life. Many times, the performers appeared to be acrobats as they jumped onto each other's shoulders or legs to perform tricks.
Another form of unity represented at the event was intercultural relationships. Andrew Gray performed a modern Chinese song, titled "Xing Yu Xin Yuan," which demonstrated that certain human qualities transcend cultures and backgrounds.
Traditional performances, such as the Korean Fan Dance, depicted the richness and history of Asian culture. The fact that such dances have survived to the present day demonstrates the Asian cultures' solid foundations. Members of the Oklahoma Undergraduate India Society and the East Meets West Dance Company performed modern cultural dances that garnered cheers from the audience.
Spirit was the final theme of the Asian Oklahoma Night. In addition to the large Asian population in attendance, there were also a number of Americans and foreign exchange students.
One of the final dances of the evening was the traditional Candle Dance, performed by members of the Society of Vietnamese Students.
Ngoc Hoang, petroleum geology graduate student and this year's president of the Society of Vietnamese students, was one of the participants in the dance that is usually performed for royalty during festivals.
"The candle holder represents the lotus flower," she said. The lotus flower is supposed to represent the purity and nobleness of the Vietnamese culture.
With a full crowd present at the night's event, OU students, teachers and members of Norman's Asian community united to appreciate Asian culture. Proceeds from the ticket sales will go toward the purchase of a plaque that will be presented to the OU in memorium of the cultural event.
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