Asian Cultures Celebrated At School Ceremony

A Japanese folk song, Afghan fashion show, and Syrian dance all found their way to Roberto Clemente’s cafeteria for the school’s annual Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month assembly.

Clemente hosted that celebratory assembly Friday, inviting students and parents to join for a school-wide display of AAPI history, cultural traditions, and growth, for a second year in a row. 

The assembly featured student poetry, student research projects, and dance and music performances. 

Clemente English language teacher and AAPI Heritage Month committee member Kelly Hebrank said Clemente’s Afghan population has continued to grow each year. She reported Tuesday that in fall 2020 Clemente had 25 – 30 students from Afghanistan. The school now has 70 Afghan students who make up 16 percent of the student population.

This year the school has a total of 90 students (20 percent of its student population) who represent AAPI and Arab heritage.

School staff explained to students and families at the start of the assembly that the celebration aimed to highlight how AAPI communities have helped shape the nation and enrich the school’s community every day. 

“Our school is made stronger by the diversity in it,” Clemente teacher and committee member Emily Nguyen said Friday. 

Students spent the morning showing off country flags from around the world and sharing phrases they’ve learned like ​“As-salamu alaykum” and ​“Namaste.”

Clemente student Ali Rahman presented Clemente’s tutor and translator for Afghan students, Gul Shahzada Hemat, the school’s AAPI Community Leadership Award as thanks for helping several families feel welcomed and connected to the school on a daily basis.

Also during Friday’s assembly, kindergarten students learned and performed a Chinese folk song, third graders performed a Japanese folk song, and students presented projects on subjects like Thailand and Islam in Afghanistan. 

Student presenters Khatera Mohammad and Razya Maiwand spoke about the differences between how adults and children practice Muslim beliefs. 

Students also performed a group Syrian dance, read aloud poems in Pashto and Dari, strutted in an Afghan fashion show, and performed the Afghan national dance known as Attan. 

During a photo-and-voice presentation, students Ranim Moussa and Fahima Murad created a slideshow to share about life in Syria. They included photo examples of breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals eaten after families break fast for Ramadan. 

Famous dishes like kibbeh and halawet were described, and students spoke about how all meals are often eaten by a family sitting down together.

Fifth-grader Romy Zia, who walked in Friday’s Afghan fashion show, said the assembly is important as it shows her peers what her culture is like. She particularly enjoyed explaining why her family fasts for some holidays because ​“some people don’t do it, so they don’t understand and I want them to understand me.” 

Next year she said she hopes to be a part of an Afghan girls dance. 

Fifth-grader Wasall Nizami, who grew up in Afghanistan, said he enjoyed seeing the Attan performance because he’s seen it before at weddings and other celebratory events. 

He added that Friday’s assembly helps him and his peers get to know each others’ cultures through food, dance, and music. He hopes to be a part of the Afghan national dance next year, he said.