The festivities of Diversity Week continued Wednesday with a fashion show in the University Center ballroom at 7 p.m.
Among the crowd, there were guests of a variety of different races and cultures. The show was hosted by SGA Speaker of the Senate John Hayes. Hayes introduced the crowd to the people and cultures presented at the show, as well as provided his own commentary.
The first set of outfits on display were types of traditional wear. The first two participants were African-American females, with the first dressed in a red coat with black leggings and the next wearing a dress with a black top complimented by the white, black and brown pattern of the bottoms.
Next up was SGA senator Esmeralda Mejorado and another male at her side. They both represented Hispanic wear with the man wearing a button-up white shirt and casual shorts and Mejorado wearing a traditional style white top with a blue dress. Neither wore shoes.
Next came a Korean male sporting a large, baggy gray sweater and tight jeans. Another African-American woman walked on stage wearing a large, traditional African style shirt with jeans. The final part of the traditional showcase had two Arabic men wearing traditional garbs and head attire.
The traditional showcase was followed by a formal showcase, an intermission and a representation of all the flags of the nations where the participants come from. These flags include California, Mexico and South Korea. The two Arabic men are from Saudi Arabia, but their flag was not shown.
The fashion show was capped off by a short speech from Mejorado. At the end of her speech, she went on to say passionately that UTM “is not just a PWI,” which stands for “predominately white institute.”
Afterwards, the participants went to center stage and raised a fist in solidarity, cementing that UTM is home to a multitude of cultures and races.
The Diversity Week Fashion Show is a tradition at UTM and allows students to experience, more precisely, the other cultures and traditions they may not know about around campus and in their community.
