By Lizeth Vejar
There are many clubs on campus that help BYU students preserve a culture as an identity.
Many BYU students are Hispanic and Latino and make up 7 percent of the student body on campus. A Spanish student ward was created in 2019.
BYU Hispanos Unidos is a club for students from Spanish speaking or Latin American countries. The purpose of the club is to help them express their identity and give them resources to feel included and involved at BYU.
“The reason we wanna keep our Hispanic identity or Latino identity alive on campus is because it is honestly everything to us, we eat it, we sleep it and we live through our traditions,” Hispanos Unidos President Erick Calderon said.
The club organizes fun activities each semester that are open to everyone. During the activities members display their community pride by wearing traditional clothing or shirts with flags of their countries. They also eat authentic food.
“The activities we do at Hispanos Unidos are centered around students so that they feel more at home and that they feel more Hispanic and Latino,” said Thania Portillo, Hispanos Unidos Activities Coordinator.
“I want to keep my identity as Latina because we live in a world of challenges and it’s crucial to defend our equality and diversity,” Hispanos Unidos member Vanina Vazquez said.
While the primary focus of this club is for Hispanic and Latino students, anyone willing to learn and celebrate Hispanic and Latino culture is welcome. Some club members do not have a Hispanic or Latino heritage but participate in the club and its activities because they appreciate the culture.
As long as there are Hispanics on campus, BYU Hispanos Unidos will keep enriching Hispanics’ lives and helping them cherish their culture. The Hispanos Unidos club meets every other Thursday at 6:30pm.
