Greetings Tigers! It’s so nice that we get to meet once again, and hopefully you have been doing well since we last caught up! We are finally creeping into the time of year full of beloved Mizzou traditions like Homecoming, football games and more! We love so many of our long standing traditions like these because they give us an exciting reason to look forward to the school year and convene with other Tigers!
In the spirit of traditions, however, we think that it’s absolutely fitting to acknowledge some of our much newer (but equally as relevant) Mizzou traditions that also take place around this time of year! In this Friday’s blog, we want to highlight two of these: Disability Culture Month and Hispanic Heritage Month.
Historical Context:
Almost 100 years after this first Homecoming, Mizzou held its inaugural Celebrate Ability Week in 2010 “to promote disability awareness and culture and to highlight the valuable contributions of people with disabilities at Mizzou.” Eventually, this celebration became Disability Culture Month held each September.
Mizzou’s primary organization pertaining to disability is the Mizzou Disability Coalition. According to its Constitution, its stated purpose is “to educate on disability as a form of diversity, advocate for accessibility, and facilitate volunteer opportunities.” To this day, the coalition works to raise awareness for and advocate on behalf of Mizzou’s disabled community.
On a broader scale, Hispanic Heritage Month is a nationally recognized holiday that actually used to be National Hispanic Heritage Week. This week-long holiday originated when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed it into law in 1968. It was not until 1988 that Ronald Reagan signed the month-long observance into law after California representative Esteban Torres proposed a bill to extend the holiday. Torres believed that the country needed more time to properly acknowledge and appreciate Hispanic culture and achievement.
The reason why the holiday ranges from September 15th to October 15th is because it marks the anniversary of independence for Latin American countries like Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. The overall purpose of the holiday is “to celebrate the history, culture and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.”
Relevance Today:
As you can see, neither of these observances have been around very long, but that does not discount the drastic impact they have had on Mizzou specifically. Even though Disability Culture Month ends in six days, those working to further disability efforts here at Mizzou have decided to maximize that time with multiple events happening within the next week. It’s one thing to read our blog and do some online research, but taking the time to attend events and support initiatives in real time goes so much further.
If you would like some additional information regarding Mizzou disability resources, here are some helpful links:
In terms of Hispanic Heritage Month, we are nearing the middle of this observance, but there are still various events occurring this month, next month and even into November to celebrate this holiday. In addition to checking out the events that IDE is putting on, also make an effort to attend the events that the Multicultural Center - in conjunction with organizations like the Association of Latin@ American Students - is hosting to celebrate Latin@ Heritage in the coming weeks. The Association of Latin@ American Students, or ALAS, is a student-run organization that “strives to promote cultural competency, and raises awareness about Latin@ issues happening globally and on-campus.”
If you would like additional information regarding resources on Hispanic Heritage Month and the entities that make Mizzou’s observation of this holiday possible, please visit these links:
Follow Association of Latin@ American Students on Facebook
Even after reading all the books, clicking on all the links, attending all the events and talking to as many people as possible, no one will ever be able to directly experience what it is like to live with a disability or navigate campus as someone with Hispanic heritage. This is important to keep in mind because it means we must be extremely empathetic but also proactive if we really want to see equity for marginalized groups on this campus.
Don’t let your activism or support stop at the end of the month or on October 15th because there is still work to do. In the same way that we work year-round to prepare for and celebrate our long-standing traditions, we must keep the same energy for Disability Culture Month and Hispanic Heritage Month. Fight Tiger!
TTN Junior
Click on Rachel's name for author bio!
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